A Wells Fargo female vice president from Los Angeles is suing the company and coworkers for sexual harassment and rape, claiming that Wells Fargo failed to protect her from a “grossly hostile work environment” and retaliated against her when she came forward with allegations.
The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, names Wells Fargo Bank, two managers, and two co-workers as defendants in the case. The vice president is listed as Jane Doe in the lawsuit, who says a co-worker raped her and sexually harassed her during her three years of employment at Wells Fargo.
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Doe, who worked as a Wells Fargo senior vice president in Southern California beginning in April 2018, said the first manager repeatedly made several unwanted advances and physical contact, such as groping and sexually denigrating comments, referring to women as “dogs,” per the lawsuit.
On one occasion on Jan. 28, 2020, Doe said she and the defendants were out for dinner and became intoxicated. The second manager allegedly walked her back to her hotel room, and the first manager soon forcibly entered the room and raped her, the lawsuit claims.
Doe reported the rape and sexual harassment to the second manager, who allegedly suggested that she not give the first manager “a window of opportunity” to be inappropriate.
She then filed a complaint to the Wells Fargo ethics hotline in November 2020 and a criminal complaint with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Shortly after, Wells Fargo and the first manager allegedly retaliated by reassigning some of her clients, excluding her from important meetings, and threatening to keep her from “lucrative accounts.”
“After reporting the Jan. 28, 2020 incident, as well as the other harassing conduct by [manager], no meaningful investigation ensued,” the lawsuit states. “For several months, Wells Fargo did close to nothing to actually investigate Plaintiff’s report of being raped and harassed by her male colleagues, such as asking for witnesses or getting Plaintiff’s statement.”
The lawsuit claims that it was not until April 2021, when Doe made a charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, that Wells Fargo’s internal investigation began.
Doe began medical leave in April of that year for stress, anxiety, and depression stemming from both the trauma from the sexual assault but also the “utter lack of care” by Wells Fargo.
The vice president was “forced to resign” from her employment around July 2021, the lawsuit states, as continuing employment under the company was “intolerable for her mental well-being.”
“Our client was taken advantage of and raped by a superior, suffering trauma, betrayal, and an utter invasion of personal space that no one should be subjected to in any workplace,” said attorney Ron Zambrano, who is representing Doe. “Wells Fargo’s response, just sitting on their hands and dragging their feet not even attempting to conduct a competent investigation, is absolutely unacceptable.”
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Doe is seeking compensatory and punitive damages for lost wages and benefits, as well as emotional distress.
Wells Fargo declined to comment on the lawsuit at this time. The Washington Examiner reached out to the defendants for comment, as well.
