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BAI{BAIL\ A. BRESNAN,
Plaintiff, COMPLAINT
V
Civil ActionNo.
TOWN OF HENRIETTA, JACKMOORE, CRAIG
ECKERT, and PETER MINOTTI,
Defendants.
Plaintiff, Barbara A. Bresnan, by her attorneys, Underberg & Kessler LLP, Paul F.
Keneally, Esq. and Alina Nadir, Esq., of counsel, alleges for her Complaint as follows:
JURY DEMAND
I . Plaintiff, Barbara A. Bresnan, demands a tnal by j ury of all issues in this action.
2. Ms. Bresnan seeks to recover damages against Defendants, the Town of Henrietta (the
"Town"), Jack Moore, Craig Eckert, and Peter Minotti (collectively, "Defendants"), for unlawful
discrimination, hostile work environment, sexual harassment, and retaliation based upon Plaintiff s sex
and gender, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C. $ 2000e
et seq., (hereinafter "Title VII"), 42U.5.C. $ 1983 (hereinafter "$ 1983"), and the New York State
Human Rights Law $ 290 et seq. of the Executive Law ofthe State ofNew York ("NYSHRL").
3. Ms. Bresnan previously filed a claim with the Equal Employment Opportunity
4. This Court has subject matter jurisdiction over the Plaintiff s claims on this action
pursuant to the United States Constitution, 42 U.S.C. $1983, 42 U.S.C. $ 2000e-5(f)(3)(Title VII), 28
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U.S.C. $ 1331, and28 U.S.C. $ 1343. This Court also has supplemental jurisdiction pursuant to 28
5. Venue is proper in this district pursuant to 28 U.S.C. $ 1391 and 42 U.S.C. $ 2000e-
s(0(3).
6. This Court has the power to issue declaratory relief pursuant to 28 U.S.C. $$ 2201
and2202.
THE PARTIES
7 . Plaintiff is an individual who resides at 109 Camelot Drive, Rochester, New York
t4623.
8. At all times relevant to the Complaint, Plaintiff was, and remains, Defendants'
10. Defendant Jack Moore served as the Town's Town Supervisor at all times relevant
to this Complaint.
11. Defendant Craig Eckert is the Town's Deputy Director of Engineering and
Planning.
F'ACTS
13. Ms. Bresnan began working for the Town of Henrietta as a Laborer in 2001 and
14. In January 2014, former Town Supervisor Jack Moore assumed office and
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15. From the beginning of Mr. Moore's tenure, he made inappropriate comments to
16. In January 2014, Mr. Moore repeatedly referred to Ms. Bresnan as "my girl" and
17 . On or about January 28,2074, Mr. Moore told Ms. Bresnan that "it's as cold as a
witch's tit out there." When Ms. Bresnan indicated she did not know what that meant, Mr. Moore
came close to her chest with a cupping motion of his hand, and stated, "Think about it. If you had
a witch's tit in your hand. It's cold."
18. Upon information and belief, in or around February 2014, Mr. Moore learned that
19. In Fcbruary 2014, Ms. Bresnan's work assignments began to change. She was
assigned to work alone on jobs that required more than one person to complete. Ms. Bresnan also
20. In March 2014, Mr. Moore commented to Ms. Bresnan's co-worker that maybe the
co-worker "...could take Barb shopping. She could use some help." Ms. Bresnan was present for
that comment.
21. Also in March 2014, Ms. Bresnan heard Mr. Moore say to Barbara Chirdo, a
member of the Town's Human Resources Department, as they passed by her, "Tell me she don't
22. In April 2014, Ms. Bresnan's work assignment at the Town Hall building was
a
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23. The April 2014 work assignment change was not due to work performance; Ms.
24. Mr. Moore also engaged in behavior meant to intimidate Ms. Bresnan.
25. On or about September 20,2014, Ms. Bresnan was working in a town park. Mr.
Moore was driving his vehicle nearby. He began driving towards Ms. Bresnan and then swerved
when he was within a few feet of hitting her. He rolled down his window and said, "Oops, see,
26. On or about September 24, 2014, seasonal employee Linda Elsbree told Ms.
Bresnan that Mr. Moore told an employee, "Unfortunately, we have to accept certain people's
lifestyles." Upon information and belief, Mr. Moore was refening to Ms. Bresnan.
27. In or around November 2014, Ms. Bresnan complained about the harassment and
28. Ms. Bresnan specifically complained that Mr. Moore was discriminating against
29. Ms. Chirdo told Ms. Bresnan she would not investigate the complaint and told Ms.
30. The Town took no action regarding Ms. Bresnan's complaints, nor did the Town
31. In fact, the harassment and retaliation continued and even escalated.
32. On or about November 12, 2014, Mr. Eckert was videoed walking around and
33. On or about December 1,2014, Mr. Eckert spoke to Ms. Bresnan's co-worker about
her harassment complaint to Ms. Chrido, questioning why she made a complaint and stating that
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if she did not make her complaint immediately then, "Fuck [het]. [She doesn't] have a valid issue."
34. On or about February 76, 2015, Ms. Bresnan was on-call for snow removal on
sidewalks and parking lots of town facilities. Snow removal was necessary, but instead of calling
Ms. Bresnan, Mr. Eckert, a member of the Town's Highway Department management, performed
35. Such work is done by the Parks Department, not the Highway Department and
especially not by management, but Ms. Bresnan was never called to come into work and was
36. After Ms. Bresnan reported these events to her union representative, Mr. Eckert
unbelievably shoveled snow back onto sidewalks recently shoveled by Ms. Bresnan on Town
property.
37. Upon information and belief, Mr. Eckert bragged about the events and said "now
38. On or about February 21,2015, Mr. Eckert agatnbypassed Ms. Bresnan when snow
removal was needed. In fact, every member of the Parks Department was called except for Ms.
Bresnan.
39. Ms. Bresnan drove to a Town building to see who was called in for the work, and
she observed Mr. Eckert plowing himself, againviolating the union contract specifically to prevent
40. After her harassment complaint, not only was Ms. Bresnan replaced by a male
employee after being removed from her assignment, Mr. Moore specifically stated that a male
employee was chosen because "being a man, he was able to do certain things that Barb couldn't
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4L Mr. Moore made this statement despite the fact that Ms. Bresnan had been
successfully performing her duties for two years prior to the job change.
42. Mr. Moore's comment demonstrated that the sole basis for Ms. Bresnan's job
43. During the EEOC investigation, witnesses also stated that Mr. Moore stated that
Ms. Bresnan "might as well be a man . . . because you can't tell she's a woman."
44. Ms. Bresnan found the hostile work environment and discrimination to be
unbearable. She eventually needed to take a medical leave beginning in or around September 2015.
45. The EEOC investigation found that when Ms. Bresnan attempted to return to work,
the Town would not allow her to do so and required Ms. Bresnan to undergo an Independent
Medical Examination.
46. Ms. Bresnan had taken medical leaves previously and had never before been
41. This delay caused Ms. Bresnan to lose additional pay. The EEOC found a "nexus"
48. In addition, the Town refused to hire Ms. Bresnan's son as a seasonal worker in
2015, despite having done so in the past, and the EEOC found this was evidence of retaliation.
49, Mr, Minotti, as Deputy Town Supervisor, knew or should have known of the
discrimination and harassment and did nothing to stop or remedy any of the illegal behavior.
50. More generally, the EEOC investigation found that the individuals responsible for
equal employment opportunity in the Town were constrained by a system in which "the primary
51. It further found that the Town's failure to take any action on internal discrimination
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complaints prevented others from reporting such behavior and had a clear chilling effect on other
employees.
52. Ms. Bresnan filed an EEOC Charge regarding the above-described discrimination
and harassment.
53. After an investigation, the EEOC found reasonable cause to determine that the
discrimination, harassment and retaliation occurred. See the probable cause determination
INJURIES
54. Ms. Bresnan experienced discriminatory behavior as soon as Mr. Moore took office
as Town Supervisor. Her position was admittedly changed solely due to her gender, and she was
subjected to repeated offensive and gender-based comments directly from the Town's top official.
The environment led to a necessary medical leave after which she was retaliated against.
55. Ms. Bresnan's mental health suffered greatly as a result of the Town's conduct.
She had nightmares about Mr. Moore. Mr. Moore continually attempted to intimidate Ms.
Bresnan, asking co-workers about her partner and Ms. Bresnan's personal life. Ms. Bresnan
sought medical care as a result and began medication at her medical provider's suggestion.
56. Mr. Moore even tried to interfere with Ms. Bresnan's paftner's employment, telling
her supervisor that she was responsible for stealing campaign lawn signs.
57. Ms. Bresnan's medical benefits for herself and her family were cut off due to
58. Ms. Bresnan did not ,just suffer significant financial repercussions due to
Defendants' actions.
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59. Ms. Bresnan suffered extreme emotional issues due to the years-long fight with
Defendants, the harassment she faced, and the distress she felt in losing the ability to properly
6I. As noted, Ms. Bresnan's EEOC complaint resulted in probable cause findings, and
on October 10,2018, she was issued a Right to Sue letter from the EEOC for the charge No. 525-
62. The Defendants undeftook all ofthe actions and omissions alleged above either directly
or through their agents who were authorized to take such actions and omissions.
63. Plaintiff incorporates the preceding paragraphs as if fully set forth herein.
64. By and through their course of conduct as alleged above, the Town, and their agents
willfully violated Title VII, 42 U.S.C. $ 2000e et seq., by subjecting Plaintiff to a hostile work
environment, discriminating against Plaintiff, and denying her equal terms and conditions of
employment, harassing Plaintiff, retaliating against Plaintifl and materially altering the terms and
65. As a consequence thereof, Plaintiffhas been caused to suffer injuries and damages in
67 By and through their course of conduct as alleged above, the Town, and their agents
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willfully violated Title VII, 42 U.S.C. $ 2000e et seq., by retaliating against the Plaintiff.
68. As a consequence thereof, Plaintiff has been caused to suffer injuries and damages in
70. By and through their course of conduct as alleged above, Defendant, Town of
Henrietta, willfully violated New York State Human Rights Law by subjecting Plaintiff to a hostile
work environment, discriminating against Plaintiff, and denying her equal terms and conditions of
employment, harassing Plaintiff; retaliating against Plaintifl and materially altering the terms and
71. As a consequence thereof, Plaintiff has been caused to suffer injuries and damages in
73. By and through their course of conduct as alleged above, Defendant, Town of
Hernietta, willfully violated New York State Human Rights Law by subjecting Plaintiff to a hostile
work environment and materially altering the terms and conditions of her employment because of her
74. As a consequence thereof, Plaintiff has been caused to suffer injuries and damages in
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76. By and through their course of conduct as alleged above, Defendant Town of
Henrietta willfully violated New York State Human Rights Law by harassing and treating the
77. As a consequence thereof, Plaintiff has been caused to suffer injuries and damages in
78. Plaintiff incorporates the preceding paragraphs as if fully set forth herein.
79. By and through their course of conduct as alleged above, Defendants Moore,
Eckert, and Minotti willfully violated the New York State Human Rights Law by harassing and
80. As a consequence thereof, Plaintiff has been caused to suffer injuries and damages in
82. By and through their course of conduct as alleged above, Defendants Moore, Eckert, and
Minotti violated Section 1983 by discriminating against Plaintiff harassing the Plaintiff, retaliating
against the Plaintifl and materially altering the terms and conditions of her employment because of her
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sex and gender, and thereby depriving her of the equal protection of the laws under the Fourteenth
84. By and through their course of conduct as alleged above, Defendant Town of Henrietta
violated Section 1983 by discriminating against Plaintiff, harassing Plaintiff, retaliating against the
Plaintiff, and materially altering the terms and conditions of her employment because of her sex and
gender, and thereby depriving her of the equal protection of the laws urder the Fourteenth Amendment
(b) Accepts, impanels and charges ajury with respect to the claims for relief; and
i. Back pay, front pay, and all benefits along with pre and post judgment
ii. Punitive, liquidated, and compensatory damages including, but not limited to,
damages for pain and suffering, anxiety, humiliation, physical injuries and emotional and physical
distress in order to compensate her for the injuries she has suffered and to signal to other employers
attnal;
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111. Attorneys' fees, costs, and expenses as provided for by the applicable
statutes; and
111. Any other relief which this Court deems just and proper
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EXHIBIT A
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Charcs ltlumbgl
s2$2015.00155
DETERMfNATION
Under the authori$ vesled in me by the Commission, I issue the following determination as to
the merits of the subject charge filed under lho Title Vll of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as
amended ('Title Vll"). All reguirements for coverage have been met.
g.harging Party, who has^ been employed by Re spon-dgnt since 2001 and is cunongy a
Mainlenance Mechanic lll, allegos that beginning in 2014, and continuing, Town Subervisor
Jack Moors has made inappropriats commsnts and gestures to her andi class of timate
employees. Specifically, Charging Party wfto is a lesbian alleges that Town Supervisor Moore
has commented on her appearance, including stating, "tell rno she don't just look li!<s a guf,
Charging Party also alleges that Town Supervisor Moore has engaged in conduct to intimiiate
her. Specifically, Charging Party alleges thal on September 20,20'14, he drove his vehicle
toward her while she was directing traffic; Charging Party alleges that he swerved less than
three feet in front of her and slated , "6ops, seo, l'm nico, 1 missed you". Charging party alloges
that because of her gendor, she hag been denied equal torms, sondltions anO-priiiteges
afforded othor omployeas. Charging Party alleges that she has besn assignerj rnore work and
has been subj€ct to gr€ator scrutiny. Charging Party alleges that when she complained to
Respondent's Human Resources representative regarding the discriminalory treatment she
faced, she was advised that th€ representative could not investigate.
Respondent denios that Charging Party was discdminated against or retaliatbd against.
Respondent allegos that Charging Party has suffered no adverso action. Resporident maintains
that Charging Party is "difficult to worlt with" and her unsatisfactory performanco led lo her being
reassigned from the Town Hall building. Respondent denios any dlscriminatory commsnts or
conduct attributed to Town Supervisor Jack Moore. Respondent acknowlsdges that on or about
$eptombor 20,2A14, Town Supervisor Moore, while pulling into an entrance-(with hisvohicle)
where charglng Party was directing traffic, statod "see, I'm a nics guy, I missed yorL".
Respondent acknowledges that on or about November 12,2Q"14, Charging Farly made a
complaint that Town Supervisor Moore was discriminating againsl ner inO-tnat ihe
'scared".
w"
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The investigation establishes that in April 2014, Charging Party, who is female and a lesbian,
was removod frorn her assignmenl at tha Town f{all building and replaced.by a mate emptoyoe.
The evidence did nol supporl Respondentls conlention that Charging Farty was removed from
hor assignmont at the Town Hall Building because of unsatisfactory perforinance. ir'"i".oiJ
illustrated that Charging Party had received positive evaluations regarding her work.
Significantly, during the investigation, Town Supervisor Mosre providod lhat a male employoo
was assigned to the Town Hall buildlng, becaus€ 'lbeing a man,. hs was able lo do certain iSings
that Barb couldn't do", such as use a laddor. Ttrwn Suporvisor Moorels stat€ments,defied,logii
and lacked credibility, where, it was undisputed lhat Charging Party had been working -
Maintenance Mechanic lll since 2012. Most importantly, however, Town Supervisor Mooro's "" "
words provide dlrect evidence of his bias towards Charging Pa{y {and other female employees)
'
becausa of sex. Evidence produeed during {he investigation also supported Charglng party
contentions that sho was dsnied overllme opportunities in favor or mbie employeei:and was
s
assigned out-of,litle work besause of hor gender/gender stereotypes. thenifoia, there was
sufficient evidence to conclud€ that Charging Party was denied equal terms, conditions and
privileges of employment because of sex.
Evidenco produced during ths invostigation illustraled that Charging parly was subiect to
unwelcome cornrnents and conduct ln the workplacs becauso olse*x. Ouring tneinvestigation,
Charging party al€dibly provided that in or about March 2A14, Town Superiisor Moore
commented to a co.worker, "maybe you could take Barb shopping.., she oould use some help'
and also provided lhat she overheard him comment (to the then-Human Rssources
representative), "tell me she don't just look like a g.uf., Although Respondent's r€presentatives
denied any such comments were made, stalements of witnesses confirmed that iown
Supervisor Moore repeatedly made statements concerning Charging Party's appearance and
dress {such as "she rnightas wetl be a man... because can't tetlsrrd's a wom*i-r;1.-sup.ervisor
Moore's comrnenls ragarding Charging Party displayad an intense animosity tow'arAs her nased
on sex/sax stereotyping. Whan viawed, through this prism, his acknowledged conduct on
September 2A,201'4, can only been seon as an sffort to intimidate Charglig party. lmportanlly,
it was evidenl from the record thal charging Party's health was affocteo uylrre
commenlslconduct in the workplace to such an extent as to necessitate a medical leave
beginning in September 2015. Therefore, there was sufficient evidence to conclude that
charging Party was subject to a hostile work environment because of sex.
To be noted, the record indicates that Town Supervisor Moore also made derogatory and sex-
based comments to other female employee-s. The investigation reveals that To-wn S'upervisor
Moore's commenls w€r€ not llmiled to lhe charging Party or other females; the evioance
illustrates lhat the Town Supervisor Moors also rnade discriminalory and derogatory comments
concerning the disabled and African-Americans.
It was undisputed that on or about November 12, 2014, Charging Party made an intemal sex
discrimination enmplaint to Respondent and on December 2,2014, it received notice of her
tharge with the Commission, The record indicates that when subsequenily taking meoicaiieave
Res:pondent invoked the state's civil service law and requirod her to undeigo an independent
Medical Exam (lME) beforo it would allow her to retum to work as schedulJd, rhe evioence
illustrates that Respondent had not previously required Charging Party to undergo an IME when
returning from a prior medical leave. The evidence also illuslrates that Respondent has not
required employees who have not engaged in protected activity to undergo an IME when
roturning fr:om a medical leave. Hence, there was a nexus betwoen Chaiging party,s
complainls and Respondent's adverse treatment, which resulted in a loss of pay. AOOitionally,
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the investigation reflects that beginning in 2015, Charging Party's son, who had been a
seasonal worker for Respondent, has not been re-hired. Respondent failed to provide a
legitimate reason for denying him employment and there was evidence to indicale that it took
similar actions with respect to other employees who had engaged in protected activity.
Therefore, lhere was sufficient evidence to conclude that Charging Party was retaliated against
for opposing Respondent's discriminatory conduct.
The investigation establishes thal even prior to Charging Party's efforts to report the Town
Supervisol's conduct and comments, Respondent knew about his discriminatory behavior (and
ths behavior of his subordinates). The evidencg_cfearly illustrates that at the time Char-ging'
Party filed her intemal complaint in Novomber 2014, Respondent's representativos 5aO nj
intention of conducting a meaningful or effective investigation into her complaints. Significanly,
Respondent has failed and continues to fail to take reasonable care to prevent and conect the
harassment by Town Supervisor Moore and other employees acting on his behalf.
The investigation flnds that Respondent does not have a Human Resourcas Department ora
full-time Human Resources professional to address egualemployment opportunity matters or
reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities .The record reflects that the
employees assigned "human resources'tasks have often been employees whose tiles havs
included, 'Direc{or of Finance" and 'Payroll Clerk". The evidence illustrates that these
individuals possess little knowledge of equal employm€nt opportunity issues. Additionally,
statempnts of the parties dsmonstrale that those responsible for equal employment opp6rlunity
matters ar6 con$trained by an organizational system, whera the prrimary discrirninator/harassei
retains authori$ and control over lhair ernploymenl. Moreover, Respondent representaiives'
admitted failuro to take action regarding internal discrimination complaints, has without queslon,
prevented employees from reporting possible discriminatory conduct by the Town Supervisor
{and others), Furtherrnore, Town $uperuisor Moore's inlentionalacts of retaliation against
Charging Farty and others engaging in protectsd aotivityr creates a chilling effect on lotential
hanned parties reporting discrjmination and obstructs the Commission ln its mission to eradicate
discrimination in the workplace.
Based on the above, Respondent's asserted defense does not withstand scrutiny and the
Commission has determined that there is reasonable cetus€ to believe that Respondent
discriminated against Charging Party and a class of female employeos because of sex.
Charging Party was subject to continued harassment because of her gender/gender
stereotyping and was also subject to unequal terms, conditions and privileges of employment
afforded other employees. Following her opposition to Respondent's discriminatory conducl,
Charging Party was retaliated against. Employees who also engaged in activity protected under
the statutes enforced by the Commission, wero also subject to retaliation.
This determination is final. The statutes require that, if the Commission determines that there is
reasonable cause to believe that violations have occurred, it shall endeavor to eliminate the
alleged unlawful employment practlces by informal methods of conference, conciliation, and
persuasion. Having determined that there is reason to believe that violations have occurred, the
Commission now invites Respondent to join with it in an effort toward a just resolution of this
matter. Enclosed is a letter outlining the proposed lerms of conciliation.
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Disclosure of information obtained by the Commission during the conciliation process will be
made in accordancs with Section 1601-26 of the Commission's Procedural Regulations. When
the Respondsnt declines to enter settlement discussion, or when the Comrnission's
representative is unable to s€cure settlement acceptable to the Director, the Director shallso
inform the parties, in writing, and advise thom of the court enforcement alternativo available to
the Charging Party, the aggrieved persons and the Commission,
sEP 2 S 2017
Date E. Thompson, Jr
Cc
RespondenJ's Atlornev
Patrick Naylon, Esq.
James M. Paulino ll, Esg.
Goldberg Segalla, LLP
2 State Street, Suite 1200
Rochester, NY 14614
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EXHIBIT B
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U.S. Department o,f Justice
Civil Rights Division
-I'h'erefore,
you should consult an af'torney of
r:nabie to locate an attorney, you trray wish to contact
may appoint an attorney in appropriate circr$lstances
We are return,ing the files in this matter to EEOC's Buffalo Local Office. If yor,i or your attomey have any
questions concet:ning th,is matter or wish to inspect the investigative files, please feel free to adclrress your inquiry to:
John E. Thornpson, Jr., Director, EEOC,6 Fountain Plaza, Ste. 350, Buffalo, NY 14202.
Sincerely,
John M. Gore
Acting Assistant Attorney General
Civil Rights Division
By:
Karen D. Woodard
Principal Depury Chief
Empioynent I-it,igation Secti on
ca Town of Henrietta
Patrick B. Naylon, Esquire
EEOC, Buffalo Local Office