Sexual Harassment in Pro Sports

Situation Analysis:

• New York Knicks basketball team executive awarded over $11 million in punitive damages for sexual harassment suit

• Four – week trial

• The case exposed the organization and its managers unfavorable publicity

• Anucha Browne Sanders, the Knicks’ senior vice president of marketing and business operations accused the teams owner, the Garden, and its president, Isiah Thomas with sex discrimination and retaliation.

• Ms. Browne Sanders accused Mr. Thomas of verbally abusing and sexually harassing her over a 2-year period.

• The Garden fired her about a month after she complained to top management about the harassment.

• The Garden cited numerous explanations for the dismissal, saying she had failed to fulfill professional responsibilities.

• Mr. Thomas vigorously insisted he was innocent and thought the suit was for financial gain.

• Little corroboration from witnesses

• Little witnesses from the Garden regarding her performance not up to par

• Jury decided in favor of the plaintiff – Browne

• The Gardens said they look forward to appeals court

Case Questions:

1. Do you think Ms.

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Browne Sanders had the basis for a sexual harassment suit? Why or why not?

No because there was limited facts presented. First, she stated that the sexual harassment went on for over two years. She should have documented the harassment and not wait so long to report it. I believe she was mad that the Garden failed to fulfill professional responsibilities to investigate. Based on her testimony and lack of witnesses, it seems that this was a retaliation of her getting fired.

2. From what you know of this case, do you think the jury arrived at the correct decision? If not, why not? If so why?

I don’t think the jury made the right decision.

There was not any proof of sexual harassment. It was her word against his. If I was awarding 11 million dollars I would need proof that this happened, either by voice recording, more than a couple witnesses. This is a large organization and over the two years there should have been more co-worker witnesses.

3. Based on the few facts that you have, what steps if any could Garden management have taken to protect themselves from liability in this matter?

The Garden should have proper documentation regarding her job performance. Documentation could consist of written warnings, job evaluations, or simple documented discussions. Have a witness in the room to help documentation. If they really had a case, I believe that they could have had more reliable witnesses. I’m sure Ms. Browne worked with many people and vendors.

4. Aside from the appeal, what would you do now iI you were the Garden’s top management? Maybe put a positive press release about employees that are treated fairly at the organization. I would try and boost employee morale by providing them with a motivational speaker and knowledge in Equal Employment. I would review the human resource policy manual for up to date policies and procedures. Make sure there are proper employee complaint forms in place and steps to take on how to react and respond. Train the managers on Sexual Harassment and Ethics.

5. The allegations against the Madison Square Garden in this case raise ethical questions with regard to the employer’s actions. Explain whether you agree or disagree with this statement, and why.

I agree with this statement. How you fire an employee sends a powerful message to the rest of your staff. Did the employer try to improve the employee’s performance? Where is the documentation of her lacking performance? Did her supervisor set goals, establish measures, conduct review sessions and chart any progress? Clearly there was a lack of communication or it was retaliation.

Additional Comments

• If you have taken all the possible steps to help an employee improve their work performance, it may be time to fire them.

• Firing an employee could send a positive or negative message to the rest of your staff.

• Firing an employee is not illegal, but after they file a harassment complaint it looks fishy.

• Why didn’t the court look into her personnel file where there should be information on attendance records, performance evaluations, write ups if any, etc.

• There was no documentation why they fired her.

• Harassment charges should be filed as soon as possible after the incident

• There was no specific examples of harassment

An Accusation of Sexual Harassment in Pro Sports

Over the years sexual harassment has been revered on a higher level of unacceptability than ever before. Companies are setting high standards for employees concerning sexual harassment. Usually, they implement a code of ethics to encourage an ethical decision making process in the minds of their employees. People inside an organization need to know what is considered to be illicit behavior. With sexual harassment, the scale is very narrow. It can range from petitioning sexual favors, vulgar language, or any type of inappropriate touching. In the case study, “An accusation of Sexual harassment in Pro Sports,” the employers were dealing with being accused of verbally abusing and sexually harassing Ms. Brown Sanders over a two year period and once she blew the whistle to top management, she was fired a month later.

In my opinion, what is known as sexual harassment was not as popular a decade ago. Today, I feel that the line of intended hospitality and sexual harassment is extremely thin. People must filter what they say, how they say things, and how they may innocently touch the shoulder of their fellow employees, rather male or female. Based on the facts in the Sander’s verses Madison Square Garden (MSG) case, I believe that MSG could not have prevented themselves from liability, according to the Employers Liability for Employee’s Act which states, “employers are liable for the criminal conduct of their employee’s” (smallbusiness.findlaw.com). According to Principles of Management, the author insists, “top managers are responsible for monitoring their business environment” (Williams 8). It does not even matter if top management does not know what is going on, they will still be held responsible for their employee’s conduct. If I was a part of Madison Square Garden’s top management, I would make sure that I had a well established code of ethics and I would let it be known that anyone who violates the discretionary measures will be reprimanded to the highest degree, plus fined.

I say this because of the environmental changes occurring in the sports world, women are a huge part of the fan base; therefore, to uphold our image, to continue to maximize our profit momentum, to stop unfavorable publicity by the media, and to let women know that we value their opinion, would help us to remain a profitable establishment. In addition, I would do my best to deal with problematic issues with temporal immediacy. Often victims of sexual harassment have long term effects that can have a tendency to hurt them psychologically, mentally, and emotionally. The allegation against Madison Square Garden in this case does raise an ethical question with regard to the employee’s actions. In my opinion, the company became aware of Ms Brown’s complaint and instead of helping her; they allowed her to be fired. Even when she won her case for 11 million dollars; MSG neglected their social responsibility and threatened that they will appeal the decision, rather than giving a formal apology to her and their commentators.

One cliché my grandmother use to say is, “the apple does not fall far from the tree.” To me, this means that many of the characteristics displayed by the employee’s are simultaneously stemmed from the top. To conclude, nowadays, it is more common for people to report to a higher authority or a supervisor that they have been sexual harassed or assaulted. Once these issues have been acknowledged and report to top management, they should not turn away with blind eyes. Certain actions must take place if a report has been made and the company must figure out what kind of harassment took place, so they can determine what the next step of discipline will be. I believe that companies who have adopted clauses for sexual harassment on men and women were long overdue; especially, with women, who have usually kept silent, but have dealt with solidified objectification for years.

Works Cited
An Employers Liability for Employee’s Act. Find Law. 27 September, 2014. http://www.smallbusiness.findlaw.com Dessler, Gary. Human Resource Management. An Accusation of Sexual Harassment in Pro Sports. Williams, Chuck. Principles of Management. Top Management Responsibilities. South Western: Madison, OH. 2015. pp. 8.