Iowa Supreme Court overturns $790,000 sexual harassment award to government employee

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Inappropriate comments by a superior to a social worker and between other employees at the state Department of Human Services did not justify a $790,000 jury award for sexual harassment, the Iowa Supreme Court has ruled.

Friday’s ruling reversed a lower court’s verdict for Tracy White, a social work administrator and manager who sued the state agency in 2019, alleging a pervasive pattern of harassment and sexual conduct, the Des Moines Register reported.

Her lawsuit alleged lewd and graphic remarks by others in the office, including a superior joking about her wearing leather and whipping him; managers showing favoritism for more attractive and less assertive female employees; and a sexually charged atmosphere in which workers called women “eye candy” and joked about the tightness of their clothing.

White, who continued to work for the department after filing suit, testified in a 2021 trial that she suffered depression, shingles and other effects of stress related to a hostile work environment.

A jury awarded her $260,000 for past harms and $530,000 for future harm.

<bsp-list-loadmore data-module="" class=«PageListStandardB» data-gtm-region=«READ MORE» data-gtm-topic=«No Value» data-show-loadmore=«true» data-gtm-modulestyle=«List B»> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> READ MORE </bsp-custom-headline> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> Robert F. Kennedy Jr. convenes hundreds in Iowa to try for access to November ballot </bsp-custom-headline> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> Iowa asks state Supreme Court to let its restrictive abortion law go into effect </bsp-custom-headline> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> Caitlin Clark’s number will be retired at Iowa