Under terms of a settlement agreement reached with the Division, Golden Grange Kennels and its owner Joseph Mosner, of Chesterfield Township, Burlington County, will pay the former employee two separate installments of $10,000 over the next 12 months. The name of the former employee, who resides in Pennsylvania, is being withheld by the Division on Civil Rights because of the nature of her victimization.

“This is a fair settlement that resolves allegations of troubling conduct,” said Acting Attorney General Hoffman. “In any workplace setting, employees have a right to do their jobs without being subjected to inappropriate comments, inappropriate text messages, solicitations for sex, and other harassment, and employers have a duty to ensure such an environment. This case should serve as a reminder to employers throughout the State that we take this issue very seriously, and will hold accountable those who engage in, or tolerate, harassing conduct.”

Golden Grange is a dog boarding, training and grooming facility. The alleged sexual harassment victim worked at Golden Grange from January 2012 until her resignation in October of the same year. Typically, she worked the afternoon/evening shift, which included closing down the kennel facility at approximately 9 p.m. The kennel owner, Mosner, lives adjacent to the facility.

According to a Division on Civil Rights investigation, the female employee alleged that Mosner engaged in inappropriate sexual comments, sexual innuendo and sexual overtures during the course of her employment.
For example, she alleged that one time Mosner made inappropriate comments about the breast size of one of her co-workers. In another incident, Mosner allegedly led a workplace discussion about the meaning of a vulgar term – including having a co-worker look up the definition on her mobile phone and read it aloud.

The employee told Division investigators that the conduct escalated when Mosner approached her as she was alone leaving work one night and asked her to “sleep over,”and said that he could “make her feel like a woman.”

When she resisted Mosner’s alleged sexual overtures, the woman said, Mosner accused her of being a “tease” and a “prude” and, later that night, sent her a text message telling her she was “boring.” The woman told Division investigators she was so stressed by Mosner’s inappropriate remarks and pressure to have sex that she felt forced to resign. She did so on October 9, 2012.

Under terms of the settlement agreement, Mosner does not admit to the allegations made by his former employee.

In addition to the monetary terms of settlement, Golden Grange has agreed to create a written, clearly-defined anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policy. The policy must include an effective complaint procedure for employees to report alleged workplace discrimination and harassment.

The policy also must include specific protocols to ensure the prompt, thorough and impartial investigation of complaints, and ensure that swift and appropriate remedial action is taken if an investigation determines that discrimination or harassment has taken place. The settlement agreement specifies that Golden Grange will designate someone other than Mosner to receive, investigate and act on discrimination or harassment complaints.

The settlement also calls for Golden Grange to arrange training for its managers and staff employees in workplace anti-discrimination laws and policies -- including sexual harassment. The training must be provided by a source knowledgeable about both state and federal civil rights laws.

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