EEOC sues JW Marriott for sexual harassment

The JW Marriott is being sued for sexual harassment by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission over allegations that the resort allowed a male supervisor to physically and verbally harass his female employees for years.

The commission seeks unspecified monetary damages.

The lawsuit, filed Dec. 30, 2010 in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas, claims a local JW Marriott employee, who was later promoted to management, created a hostile and abusive work environment by forcing female employees to touch his crotch and by groping their breasts and buttocks.

Commission officials won't identify the accused harasser or say how long he had worked at the hotel. He was fired in December 2007 and had worked at the hotel since at least 2003.

The complaint said the resort failed to stop the manager's alleged harassment after employees Philomena Foy and Doris Allen complained about his behavior. The commission said the plaintiffs made their first complaint in 2006, but added that the behavior started as far back as 2003.

The commission seeks compensation for employees sexually harassed at the JW Marriott and a permanent injunction to prevent sexual harassment and discrimination at the resort.

Officials at the JW Marriott declined to comment Monday.