Three former aides to Rep. Brenda Lawrence (D-MI) told Politico that the congresswoman ignored complaints from them about her chief of staff’s treatment of women.
The three unnamed ex-staffers, who are all women, told Politico that they did not use the term “sexual harassment” when speaking to Lawrence about their concerns, but said that they told the congresswoman that women in the office were not comfortable around Dwayne Duron Marshall and that he treated women differently than he did male staffers. One aide told Politico that she told the congresswoman about “inappropriate” comments and physical contact from Marshall. The aides said that Marshall often commented on female staffers’ appearance, and one aide said that Marshall would come up behind her and start rubbing her shoulders, per Politico.
Lawrence denied to Politico that she received any sexual harassment complaints, but she said that she did attempt to address concerns about “management-style issues” with “individual personnel actions.”
“I want to be very clear, very firm, that I had no knowledge of any allegations of sexual harassment in my office, and when I say none, I mean none,” Lawrence told Politico. “I have had individual conversations with some of my employees when they had exit interviews. I’ve had one-on-ones and we have discussed things in the office that they felt we could do better. I have implemented training and other positive forms of correction. … But I have not, and I want to be very clear, have not ever, had an employee — former or present — talk to me about sexual harassment in my office.”
Lawrence is a former sexual harassment complaint investigator and recently introduced legislation to require staffers in Congress to take a sexual harassment training course.
Read Politico’s full report here.
So now it’s going to be a ‘thing’ if people can’t mind read? If you never lodge a complaint about harassment somehow it should STILL be addressed? Especially if you’re a female? What?
Scooping my jaw off the floor from the end of the article -
There are going to be lots of cases which make people uncomfortable regards to both the actions of harassers, and the inaction of bosses/organizations. But it has to play out if we are ever going to have workplaces that are safer environments. Not a political issue - but a societal one. Am glad this came out, and if it takes the spotlight for even a former investigator to see/hear what she is being told, so be it. Do it publicly rather than acting to save face. It is the only way to move forward.
Well written story, Ms. McNeal. Kudos.
If you have multiple aides come to you to express their discomfort with your chief of staff you do something about it. Women are frequently afraid of lodging official complaints because the process is slow and staff can be replaced easily; a former sexual harassment complaint investigator should be able to pick up fairly obvious cues.
Running scared. She should resign.
Maybe she really, really likes her chief of staff.