The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has filed a lawsuit against United Airlines after a former flight attendant claimed the carrier failed to act while a pilot posted sexually explicit photos and videos of her online.
On Thursday, the EEOC claimed United “violated federal law by subjecting a female flight attendant to a hostile work environment of sexual harassment over a multi-year period.”
ABC News reported the unidentified woman was in a relationship with the pilot—identified as Mark Uhlenbrock—but broke up with him in 2006 after he refused to stop posting the nude images.
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The lawsuit states that Uhlenbrock posted the sexually explicit images to various websites, referencing the woman’s name, home airport and United’s tagline “Fly the Friendly Skies.” The posts were allegedly seen by the woman’s co-workers, adversely affecting her working environment.
The EEOC claims the airline did nothing to discipline Uhlenbrock despite the flight attendant filing several complaints.
United forcefully denied the allegations and promised to defend itself “vigorously.”
“We have reviewed the allegations in the complaint and disagree with Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s description of the situation,” the airline said in a statement responding to the lawsuit. “United does not tolerate sexual harassment in the workplace and will vigorously defend against this case.”
The news comes one month after a female passenger sued the airline after allegedly waking up mid-flight to find a male passenger touching her inappropriately while masturbating in July 2016. Last year, a veteran flight attendant filed a lawsuit against United over clogs.
