Texas resident Tiffani Mayes has sued Ensco Offshore Co., alleging that the company fired her for complaining about sexual harassment.
Mayes’ lawsuit, filed April 6 in Houston federal court, explains that the plaintiff “worked as a radio operator for Ensco on an offshore rig in a male-dominated work environment.”
“She was faced with inappropriate sex-related comments and then fired after complaining,” court documents assert.
At the time of the harassment in question, Mayes was assigned to a rig called the DS-9 in Asia.
“Mayes’ experiences during these last three hitches on the DS-9 were miserable,” the complaint says.
It further shows that the inappropriate acts committed toward the plaintiff include a male worker texting others that he was having sex with her and another telling her that a “woman makes money either on her back or with her brain and one better figure it out quick.”
Ensco never did anything to investigate or improve Mayes’ work conditions, the suit says.
The defendant reportedly terminated the plaintiff after she complained about the treatment of a female co-worker.
According to the suit, Mayes and the other female radio operator were dismissed while the men who held similar positions were retained.
“An offshore rig cannot function without two radio operators per hitch (partly because they rotate 12-hour shifts),” it says.
“Therefore, it is unlikely that Mayes’ or Wilson’s positions were truly eliminated. Regardless, even if the positions were actually eliminated, the only two females who were rig operators and who complained about improper treatment against women were the only ones selected for this alleged reduction in force. Therefore, males and employees who did not make complaints were treated better.”
Consequently, the complainant seeks unspecified monetary damages and a jury trial.
Attorney Nitin Sud of the law firm Sud Law P.C. in Houston is representing Mayes.
Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas Case No. 4:16-CV-00933