properly on sexual harassment charges brought about by employees but decided to settle in order to avoid protracted litigation.
What a pot of crock! Compared to the six employees who were brave enough to go out on a limb, given the control of employers on their employees in the CNMI, these companies where towering and formidable giants with deep pockets and endless human resources.
Of course, the six complainants would have been mistaken and misguided in the actions they took in bringing the matter to the EEOC. Ergo, employees will now be trained on how to report and to prevent discrimination charges. How to report and to prevent discrimination charges? What happened to the matter of training employees so that sexual harassment will no longer be a common occurrence in many business establishments, such as what was alleged of Yun’s Corp and Town Inc.?
This display of snottiness toward the constituted body of recourse for people who feel victimized by tolerated practices such as sexual harassment in the workforce at Yun’s Corp. and Town Inc. should be taken seriously by the public, most specially the women.
I, for one, would be willing to fork out a portion of my means, as well as lead a fundraising campaign to recover Yun’s Corp. and Town Inc.’s $80,000 settlement if it can show that the six complainants did not have a cause to complain! We do not need the court of law for the corporations to make their case, and we have local papers that would be more than willing to publicize their defense.
In the meantime, I will boycott 99 Cents Supermarket and its sister companies, Payless in Chalan Kanoa and San Jose Market in Oleai, and would ask the general public, particularly the women, to do the same. I would also want to encourage consumers who patronize these establishments to air their concerns about the quality of services provided by these establishments. The editors of our local papers, I believe, would be more than willing to air your observations.
So, may we hear from counsel of the corporations concerned?
JAIME R. VERGARA
Oleai, Saipan
