The Country Inn lawsuit settled

A lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against The Country Inn was settled yesterday, just before a jury was to be selected in U.S. District Court, Martinsburg.

No details of the settlement were available at press time.

In September 2009, the federal agency sued 5042 Holdings Limited (which does business as The Country Inn) on behalf of Candace Bland and an undisclosed number of other waitresses.

The employees alleged that the hotel’s management failed to stop the sexual harassment that they were subjected to from two male coworkers in 2007 and 2008.

Bland claimed that after she filed a complaint, she was removed from the work schedule for a week and her work hours were reduced.

The lawsuit sought back pay and unspecified compensatory and punitive damages for Bland and others affected.

The charges were denied by Country Inn management and the company’s attorneys.