Illinois <\/strong>\u00ad\u2013 Mayor Patrick Kitching was accused of sexually harassing the former treasurer of the suburbs. According to the sexual harassment lawsuit filed by Elizabeth Gonzalez in October 2014, Kitching allegedly left numerous cards on Gonzalez\u2019s desk in addition to making sexual advances at her.<\/p>\n Gonzalez reported the sexual harassment began in 2006. The sexual harassment allegations included inappropriate looks, unwanted physical contact<\/a>, and unwelcome comments. The unwelcome comments<\/a> expressed negativity in regards to Gonzalez\u2019s physical appearance, which doesn\u2019t affect or apply to her job in any way.<\/p>\n The sexual harassment lawsuit disclosed the messages on \u201cnumerous unsolicited cards\u201d found on Gonzalez\u2019s desk. Several cards revealed Mayor Kitching\u2019s \u201csexual interest\u201d in Gonzalez. An intense message stated \u201cI think of you first thing in the morning and last thing at night,\u201d on the outside of the card, and \u201cThe rest of the day I spend thinking about us\u201d on the inside of the card. A mild message stated, \u201cxoxoxoxoxoxo missed you so much, Love ya, me.\u201d<\/p>\n The cards were unprofessional, according to the sexual harassment attorney representing Gonzalez. In 2003, Gozalez was hired as the assistant treasurer. After Gonzalez performed a phenomenal job, Mayor Kitching promoted her to treasurer in 2006. The ongoing acoso sexual<\/a> lasted throughout 2011 until Gonzalez found the courage to politely inform Mayor Kitching \u201cin no uncertain terms that she was uninterested in a romantic relationship with him.\u201d<\/p>\n Instead of only rejecting the Mayor\u2019s sexual advances, Gonzalez altered her work schedule to accommodate the amount of peace she desired at work. Gonzalez\u2019s sexual harassment attorney argued that others wouldn\u2019t like it if their boss<\/a> made them uncomfortable, which validates Gonzalez\u2019s purpose behind the changes she made at work.<\/p>\n The sexual harassment lawsuit noted Gonzalez\u2019s workload increased tremendously after she made every effort to rebuff Kitching\u2019s sexual advances, his presence, and phone calls. The suit also states Kitching \u201cbegan acting in a hostile manner towards her in front of other employees.\u201d The immeasurable level of discomfort Gonzalez experienced at work from sexual harassment was unlawful.<\/p>\n Due to the sexual harassment, and hostile work environment<\/a> that developed over time, Gonzalez did not support Kitching\u2019s campaign or re-election in 2013. Prior to the re-election, Kitching was unable to terminate employees in positions similar to Gonzalez\u2019s. However, the village of Alsip \u201cpassed an ordinance,\u201d which allowed Kitching to fire employees during the same month he was re-elected, according to the sexual harassment lawsuit. Evidence indicating Kitching followed the proper protocol and procedure according to the \u201cordinance of dismissal\u201d is unavailable. The sexual harassment lawsuit alleges Kitching omitted this essential step before he made his decision to terminate Gonzalez from the village of Alsip.<\/p>\n In Gonzalez\u2019s defense, an Alsip trustee spoke on the matter at hand by saying \u201ca good woman lost a good job,\u201d He expressed that he feels horrible about the entire situation. Although he\u2019s not responsible for the outcome of Gonzalez\u2019s job, it good to see other males at work identify and address when someone is a fault, as opposed to condoning the alleged misbehavior.<\/p>\n The truth behind the sexual harassment lawsuit has not been revealed. Instead, the village of Alsip settled the lawsuit for $120k. The village\u2019s insurance company will cover compensation. Court records show Mayor Kitching denied the sexual harassment allegations. There will not be confessions \u201cof any fault, wrongdoing, or liability.\u201d There also aren\u2019t any plans of sexual harassment prevention scheduled to reassure both current and future employees of their safety. The village of Alsip is ready to put the sexual harassment lawsuit behind them.<\/p>\n If you feel you have been the victim of workplace discrimination or sexual harassment in New York City, Miami, New Jersey or Philadelphia or if your employment rights have been violated, call us at 800-807-2209 for a free consultation. Our attorneys are available to review your claims and prepare a solid case to recover the damages and justice you deserved.<\/p>\n <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Alsip Mayor accused of Unwanted Sexual Advances Illinois \u00ad\u2013 Mayor Patrick Kitching was accused of sexually harassing the former treasurer of the suburbs. According to the sexual harassment lawsuit filed by Elizabeth Gonzalez in October 2014, Kitching allegedly left numerous cards on Gonzalez\u2019s desk in addition to making sexual advances at her. Gonzalez reported the … Continue reading “Sexual Harassment Lawsuit settled by Mayor of Alsip”<\/span><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,48,7,9,11,14],"tags":[512,513,8,81,514,102,53,289,290,515,96,292,309],"class_list":["post-399","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-employment-law","category-hostile-work-environment","category-new-jersey-lawyer","category-new-york-city-lawyer","category-philadelphia-lawyer","category-sexual-harassment","tag-elizabeth-gonzalez","tag-mayor-of-alsip","tag-new-jersey-sexual-harassment-attorney","tag-new-york-city-sexual-harassment-attorney","tag-patrick-kitching","tag-philadelphia-sexual-harassment-attorney","tag-sexual-harassment","tag-sexual-joking","tag-supervisor-sexual-harassment","tag-the-village-of-alsip","tag-title-vii","tag-unwanted-physical-contact","tag-unwanted-sexual-advances"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.discriminationandsexualharassmentlawyers.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/399","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.discriminationandsexualharassmentlawyers.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.discriminationandsexualharassmentlawyers.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.discriminationandsexualharassmentlawyers.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.discriminationandsexualharassmentlawyers.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=399"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dev.discriminationandsexualharassmentlawyers.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/399\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.discriminationandsexualharassmentlawyers.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=399"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.discriminationandsexualharassmentlawyers.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=399"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.discriminationandsexualharassmentlawyers.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=399"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Hostile Work Environment<\/h2>\n
\nMost individuals have a difficult time dealing with rejection, which leads them down a path such as a workplace retaliation<\/a>. Kitching was one of those people. The sexual harassment lawsuit stated, in July 2013, the village of Alsip notified Gonzalez\u2019s that she would no longer be employed after September 30, 2013.<\/p>\nThe Village Alsip\u2019s Sexual Harassment Settlement<\/h2>\n
Sexual Harassment Attorneys Available<\/h2>\n