1. Do you agree with the court’s reasoning about the importance of workplace context in determining whether unlawful harassment has occurred? Explain.
2. In its ruling, the court said, “Casino bartenders have the same right as other employees to expect that they will not be subjected to unlawful harassment. . . .” What impact might the court’s ruling on workplace context have on the sexual harassment protections of casino bartenders and others working in similar environments?
While she was a bartender at Gold Strike Casino Resort in Tunica County, Mississippi, Debra Brockington allegedly was subjected to sexual harassment by her female supervisor, Wanda Haley, as well as her former boyfriend and coworker, Ed Ogden. The alleged harassment included Haley grabbing Brockington’s breasts, making sexually suggestive remarks to others about Brockington, and snapping a towel against her buttocks. Brockington admitted to engaging in off-color conversations and conduct with her female coworkers. In her subsequent Title VII claim, a federal trial court, addressing Haley’s behavior, held that “within the context of the plaintiff’s work environment the alleged harassment in this case was neither severe nor pervasive.”