Teh One Who Knocks
09-24-2016, 11:55 AM
By Matt Miller - Penn Live
A PennDOT manager who was fired for blatantly violating the sexual harassment policy he was supposed to be enforcing can't get his job back, a Commonwealth Court panel ruled Friday.
Judging from the court filings, it is a mystery how Joseph Bauer, a former roadway programs coordinator, thought he was going to win that fight.
PennDOT officials canned him in October 2014 for repeatedly and flagrantly harassing one of his female subordinates. And Bauer did it in front of witnesses, court records show.
Senior Judge Rochelle Friedman wrote in the Commonwealth Court opinion that Bauer began harassing the victim, a clerk typist, in April 2014 when she wore hoop earrings to work. "Bauer would place his finger through the (earring) opening and make various comments, including, 'I am touching your hole'," Friedman wrote.
During a CPR training class that September, Bauer repeatedly told the same woman she would have to undress, the judge noted. He then stated, loudly, that "he couldn't wait to unhook (her) bra," according to Friedman.
The woman complained and Bauer was suspended without pay while an investigation was done. That probe revealed that Bauer also had asked the woman how much she would charge to have sex with him and also with an animal, Friedman wrote.
That probe resulted in Bauer being fired for violating the agency's sexual harassment policy. Bauer appealed to Commonwealth Court after the state Civil Service Commission supported his termination.
In challenging his firing, Bauer "admitted to his behavior toward (the woman) but argued that it was appropriate and explainable," Freidman noted.
No, Friedman countered, it wasn't.
A PennDOT manager who was fired for blatantly violating the sexual harassment policy he was supposed to be enforcing can't get his job back, a Commonwealth Court panel ruled Friday.
Judging from the court filings, it is a mystery how Joseph Bauer, a former roadway programs coordinator, thought he was going to win that fight.
PennDOT officials canned him in October 2014 for repeatedly and flagrantly harassing one of his female subordinates. And Bauer did it in front of witnesses, court records show.
Senior Judge Rochelle Friedman wrote in the Commonwealth Court opinion that Bauer began harassing the victim, a clerk typist, in April 2014 when she wore hoop earrings to work. "Bauer would place his finger through the (earring) opening and make various comments, including, 'I am touching your hole'," Friedman wrote.
During a CPR training class that September, Bauer repeatedly told the same woman she would have to undress, the judge noted. He then stated, loudly, that "he couldn't wait to unhook (her) bra," according to Friedman.
The woman complained and Bauer was suspended without pay while an investigation was done. That probe revealed that Bauer also had asked the woman how much she would charge to have sex with him and also with an animal, Friedman wrote.
That probe resulted in Bauer being fired for violating the agency's sexual harassment policy. Bauer appealed to Commonwealth Court after the state Civil Service Commission supported his termination.
In challenging his firing, Bauer "admitted to his behavior toward (the woman) but argued that it was appropriate and explainable," Freidman noted.
No, Friedman countered, it wasn't.