Dunkin' Donuts Franchisee Settles Lawsuit: A Store Manager Had Sexually Harassed Female Employees for Years

Following allegations of sexual harassment of Dunkin' Donuts employees by a store manager, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) just reached a $150,000 settlement with Hillcrest Marshall Inc., which owns multiple Dunkin' Donuts franchises in New York. That money is damages and back pay for employees who say they were sexually harassed by a store manager at a Westchester, New York, Dunkin' Donuts.

The EEOC filed the lawsuit in September 2015. According to the civil complaint as reported by the Journal News, the store manager pressured female employees to have sex with him. One employee, who was 20 at the time, was fired after she contacted the police. An article published by Law360, in 2015, details the allegations.

Hillcrest Marshall fired the manager and agreed not to rehire him. It will now train all managers more extensively "of obligations under the law" and institute a new anti-discrimination policy.

In a press release put out by the EEOC after the settlement, New York Regional Attorney Jeffrey Burstein said:

“It took tremendous courage for these young women, some of whom were in their teens when they worked at Dunkin’ Donuts, to stand up to their manager. EEOC is here to protect vulnerable young workers like these women who suffered workplace harassment.”