Louisiana courts reach different conclusions on sexual harassment lawsuits

The federal district courts in New Orleans and Shreveport recently considered cases of alleged sexual harassment in the workplace. The court in Shreveport dismissed the former employee's claim, while the court in New Orleans allowed a former employee's claim to proceed. The two cases with different outcomes offer lessons on how employers can and should respond to harassment allegations in the workplace.

Shreveport court dismisses sexual harassment claim

Stephanie Pritchard worked as an administrative assistant for Merakey Pennsylvania from the beginning of 2011 to the end of 2017 in its North Louisiana facility. Merakey provides mental health support and treatment to people with severe mental illness. In her role, she was responsible for maintaining health and other records kept by staff doctors and healthcare providers.

In 2017, Merakey began taking disciplinary action against Pritchard for various job-performance issues. She was written up for losing track of certain records and for disclosing confidential information without authorization. She also was written up for disclosing confidential staffing decisions to a patient.

Around the time the facility began disciplining her, Pritchard alleged in her lawsuit that she began to experience sexual harassment from a regular patient of the facility. She made the reports to her direct supervisor, however, rather than the company hotline dedicated to addressing those kinds of issues.