The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has initiated legal action against Gator Strong Services, claiming a former female office manager became victim to sexual harassment and was then unlawfully terminated. A lawsuit filed today accuses the commercial and residential home services company, which operates in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, of violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
According to the EEOC, which got the information-it went public today, the once Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Gator Strong, LLC allegedly harassed the office manager with repeated sexual comments and degrading treatment because of her gender. It is reported that the issue culminated when the COO presented her with an inappropriate written proposition and after refusing to discuss it repeatedly, the COO consequentially terminated her. Additionally, Gator Strong NC, LLC is purported to hold successor liability for these confirmed allegations of misconduct.
The case, known as EEOC v. Gator Strong, LLC and Gator Strong NC, LLC (Case No. 7:25-cv-01267-M), was placed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. This followed the EEOC's attempt to settle the issue out of court, which did not reach a resolution through its established conciliation process. The lawsuit aims to rectify what has been described as prejudicial and abusive treatment that no employee should tolerate.
Melinda C. Dugas, the regional attorney for the EEOC’s Charlotte District Office spoke out regarding the case, “No employee should have to tolerate vulgar sexual propositions to earn a paycheck,” she said and she also stated, “The provocative nature of such conduct is particularly egregious when it comes from a top executive.” The commission, Dugas affirmed, is dedicated to eliminating this type of abusive behavior from the workplace environment. The details of the lawsuit were outlined in a statement found here.
