Michigan Transportation Company Sued for Sexual Harassment

Davis Cartage Co., a transportation, warehousing and logistics company headquartered in Corunna, Michigan, violated federal law by allowing its president of logistics to sexually harass two female employees at its Owosso, Michigan location, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit announced.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, in 2023, the president of logistics, who is also on the board of directors and part owner of the company, passed over more qualified applicants to hire two young women whose photos he found on social media. He then subjected both women to harassing and possessive behavior, including regular comments on their appearance and dress; trying to discuss their personal lives; telling them they owed him for overlooking their criminal histories; inviting one or both to stay at his cabin, to go out drinking or to stay in his hotel room; closely monitoring them with the company cameras while they performed clerical work; and leaning over within inches of them at their desks.

The suit also alleges Davis Cartage knew of the executive’s sexually harassing conduct and failed to correct it. In 2020, Davis Cartage received a complaint from a female employee who alleged that he had been sexually harassing her for years. The company performed a perfunctory investigation, protected the executive, and failed to take remedial action. Thereafter, he continued to openly engage in sexually inappropriate behavior.

Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on the basis of sex, including sexual harassment. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. Davis Cartage Co., Case No. 2:26-cv-13657) in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process. The EEOC is seeking compensatory damages and punitive damages on behalf of the two employees, as well as injunctive relief to prevent future discrimination.

Source: EEOC