Subject: Fwd: Chair Congressman Towns: Government Reform Committee Hearing, 2011
FOREST SERVICE WOMEN SEEK CONTEMPT ORDER AGAINST USDA SECRETARY
SAN FRANCISCO – Thousands of current and former female Forest Service employees in California are asking a federal judge to hold Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman in contempt of court for failing to reduce workplace hostilities.
The Forest Service, a part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, has been under a court-approved settlement since January 2002, when officials agreed to establish a three-year program to train employees and enforce women’s rights in the workplace.
“By the incidents that have been occurring in the last year and a half of egregious sexual harassment, workplace violence and reprisals, it’s clear the agency has failed to prevent and eliminate sexual harassment,” said Lesa Donnelly, a former Forest Service employee and lead plaintiff in the case.
Donnelly said the Forest Service is not investigating complaints about sexual harassment. In some cases, the service is retaliating against women who make the complaints by denying them training and advancement opportunities, she said.
“We had no other choice but to file a contempt order against Secretary Veneman to let the secretary – who is at the very top of the chain – know what is going on here,” Donnelly said.
A hearing on the contempt order, which was filed in June, is scheduled for Friday in U.S. District Court in Oakland, Calif.
