Seems like a clear cut case of sexual harassment: Teenage workers at a popular sandwhich shop making genitalia-shaped meatballs and donuts and repeatedly showing them to older female employee. Employer has a written sexual harassment policy but otherwise doesn't do much to stop it. Female employee quits and files a claim.
Slam dunk, right? Not so fast. In a recent Iowa Court of Appeals decision, the court held that, on facts like these above, there was no claim. Why not? First, the evidence showed she never complained about harassment, only about the teenagers slacking and not working (and really, who among us hasn't complained about slacking teenagers?), until the very last incident in which the employer gave the teenagers a written warning. Second, and more importantly, she made no showing that the conduct was unwelcome. In fact, the evidence showed the employee brought sexual jokes to work herself.
The moral of the story here is that while sexual jokes and innuendo in the workplace are bad things that can lead to disaster, they won't by themselves expose an employer to liability. Where, as here, there's no showing that the jokes and innuendo are UNWELCOME, there is no claim. The other moral, I guess, is that if you hire teenagers, give them enough work to do so they don't get bored.
Warne v. Chaco Inc., Iowa Ct. App., No. 5-767/05-0238, 11/23/05 (note: case is unpublished, and we'll post a link to the decision as soon as it becomes available)