Brooklyn Fish Market Sued for Male-On-Male Sexual, Racial & National Origin Harassment

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed a lawsuit Monday charging M. Slavin & Sons, a retail and wholesale fish market, with creating a hostile work environment for male employees, including physical and verbal sexual harassment and offensive and degrading comments based on race and national origin.

The lawsuit alleges that, “Some of the owners and manages of M. Slavin & Sons subjected male employees, particularly black employees, including both black Americans and at least one immigrant from Africa, to ongoing harassment.”

Barry and Jack Slavin and Julio Pereira are accused of “regularly grabbing or pinching male employees’ buttocks and pushing their penises against employees’ buttocks.” Manager Chuck Clayton is accused of “frequently jabbing fish hooks into male employees’ buttocks.”
The owners and managers also made numerous crude, obscene sexual and/or racist comments. One owner used the term “n—-r” and another manager made comments such as “African b—-d” and “Let me see you run like you are in Africa.”

The lawsuit also alleges that the harassment forced employees to leave positions and one man who complained faced retaliation from the employers.

“The stunning facts of this case remind us of an ugly time in our nation’s history. The actions of these white owners, who subjected particularly men of color to horrendous physical sexual harassment and racial comments, must be challenged. When the employees said that they would fight back against the abuse, the owners consistently told them that no one would listen to their complaints and that no one would believe them. This suit shows the owners were wrong,” said Sunu P. Chandy, a senior trial attorney in the EEOC’s New York office.
If the allegations are true, the conduct of owners and managers at M. Slavin & Sons violated the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex (including sexual harassment or pregnancy) or national origin and protects employees who complain about such offenses from retaliation.

M. Slavin & Sons operates other locations in Hunts Point Market in the Bronx, Rhode Island and Virginia, but the Brooklyn location was the focus of the EEOC investigation and charges. The company denies the allegations.

Federal and state labor laws regulate the relationship between employers and employees. Labor law, also called employment law, is an entire body of laws, regulations, administrative rulings and case precedents that govern how trade unions, employees and employers must interact. This body of law also restricts some actions for these groups. These laws protect employees from poor treatment by their employers. If an employer fails to follow these regulations, an employee may be able to file a claim for lost wages, back pay and other damages. An experienced attorney is a valuable asset to have when you are thinking of filing a labor law claim against your employer or former employer. Call Napoli Bern Ripka, LLP today at 888-529-4669 to discuss your legal options.