Report: EEOC sues Fox for retaliating against reporter who complained of discrimination

[babylonsister]

http://mediamatters.org/blog/201009300043

Report: EEOC sues Fox for retaliating against reporter who complained of discrimination

September 30, 2010 6:38 pm ET by Media Matters staff

From a September 30 Politico report:

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is suing Fox News for retaliating against its reporter, Catherine Herridge, after she complained that she was discriminated against because of her age and gender, according to an EEOC complaint filed Thursday.

<...>

According to the complaint, in 2007, she made several complaints to Fox management alleging she had been discriminated against for her age and gender. Fox investigated but found no evidence of discrimination. The next year, the company asked her to sign a contract including language that she would not pursue further discrimination complaints, which she refused.

The suit alleges that the language in the new contract was retaliatory, and Herridge's subsequent status as an "at-will' employee caused her "considerable stress."

The EEOC investigated, and tried to engineer an "informal resolution" with Fox News, according to Lynette Barnes, the regional attorney for the EEOC's Charlotte District office. It was only after these efforts failed that it brought the suit, she said.

According to Politico, Fox declined comment and referred to the complaint as a "suspiciously timed press release."