A U.S. court has closed the door on hostile work environment and wage discrimination claims made by a former BlackBerry Ltd. executive who accused the company’s CEO of sexually harassing her and then retaliating against her when she reported the behaviour.
U.S. magistrate judge Sallie Kim previously granted BlackBerry and John Giamatteo’s request to turf the claims made by former chief marketing officer Neelam Sandhu but offered her a chance to amend her complaint to provide additional details supporting her allegations.
Court records show Kim has now officially dismissed the hostile work environment and wage discrimination claims after being unmoved by additional filings made by Sandhu’s lawyers, who did not immediately respond to a request from The Canadian Press for comment.
Kim ruled that alleged instances where Giamatteo asked Sandhu whether she’d work for him so they could travel together and told her people mistake him for “a dirty old man” when he’s out on a date with his daughters could “put a reasonable woman ill at ease.”
However, she agreed with BlackBerry and Giamatteo that these alleged incidents do not constitute severe or pervasive harassment.
Kim dismissed wage discrimination allegations Sandhu made that suggested the company’s presidents were paid more for doing less because the judge found the facts she provided were not sufficient to plead a claim.
BlackBerry spokesperson Camilla Scassellati Sforzolini says the Waterloo, Ont.-based tech company is pleased with the court’s dismissal but will continue to defend itself against Sandhu’s wrongful termination claims, which it feels are “baseless.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 22, 2024.
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