Second ex-Conyers staffer who alleged sex harassment dropped suit after judge denied motion to seal
Screenshot of U.S. Rep John Conyers, D-Mich.
A second former staff member for U.S. Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., accused him of sexual harassment, but she abandoned her lawsuit in March after a federal judge refused to seal her complaint.
The lawsuit alleged that Conyers created a hostile work environment in 2015 and 2016, report Politico, the Detroit Free Press and BuzzFeed News, which broke the news.
The woman claimed Conyers rubbed her shoulders and neck, kissed her forehead, blew kisses at her, and tried to hold her hand. She said she was hired partly to keep track of the 88-year-old congressman’s “whereabouts” as a result of his “age and failing mental capacities.”
The woman said Conyers’ actions caused anxiety, insomnia, depression and chest pains, spurring her to take medical leave. She was fired after refusing to turn over documents justifying the leave, the suit says.
A Conyers spokesman said the woman “voluntarily decided to drop her case.”
The woman’s suit followed the 2015 settlement of another woman’s complaint that was filed with Congress’ Office of Compliance. The woman alleged she was fired when she refused to “succumb to [Conyers’] sexual advances. BuzzFeed News was first with the news; the New York Times was among the publications also reporting on the settlement.
Conyers confirmed the settlement but denied the allegations.
The first woman received $27,000, which Conyers termed a “reasonable severance payment.” The money came from Conyers’ office budget rather than a designated fund for settlements, according to BuzzFeed News.
BuzzFeed describes the Office of Compliance process. Employees must report a sexual harassment incident to the office within 180 days. A lengthy process of counseling and mediation follows. A confidentiality agreement must be signed for a complaint to go forward. Next, an employee can sue in federal court or opt for an administrative hearing, followed possibly by a negotiation and settlement.
The alleged harasser gets free representation by House counsel, but the accuser does not.
