If you are planning a trip to Los Angeles, you might want to be aware of a fancy resort now facing a lawsuit by current and former employees.
Eight women say they were sexually harassed or sexually assaulted at the elite Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes.
“A supervisor in the Terranea security team began sending me sexually offensive text messages,” former employee Jasmine Sanchez said.
Sanchez is one of eight women claiming they were either sexually harassed or assaulted while working at the resort.
She and a second woman spoke out during a news conference on Thursday detailing they say what happened at the job.
“On one occasion, he tried to kiss me at work,” former worker Sandra Pezqueda said.
Pezqueda says when she complained, she was fired. Pezqueda worked at Palos Verdes as a contractor.
She filed a lawsuit and received a settlement from her employer Excel Maintenance. The women along with labor and civil rights activists are calling on the public and other companies to boycott the resort.
Only two of the accusers have filed lawsuits. The statute of limitations expired for the others.
Terranea released a statement which reads:
“Terranea takes all comments and concerns very seriously as part of our ongoing efforts to ensure our associates have a workplace in which they feel valued respected and safe. Terranea vehemently denies the allegations being leveled against it by former employees and one current employee that have recently been reported. Terranea has a zero-tolerance policy toward harassment of any kind. We do not comment on pending litigation.”
The women are also calling for better protections against sexual harassment for female workers employed by staffing agencies.