Franchina v. City of Providence

Franchina v. City of Providence United States Court of Appeals, First Circuit, 881 F.3d 32 (2018).

Facts In Rhode Island, Lori Franchina, a rescue lieutenant with the Providence Fire Department, was

assigned to work a shift with firefighter Andre Ferro. During the shift, Ferro subjected her to

unprofessional sexual comments and conduct. Based on Franchina’s account of Ferro’s actions,

Chief Curt Varone filed an intradepartment complaint charging Ferro with sexual harassment.

• What is an intra-departmental complaint?

• Answer

• This is a complaint that stays within the Providence Fire Department, as opposed to a

complaint that might be filed with a federal agency, for example.

Other firefighters then began to treat Franchina with contempt. She was subjected to

insubordination and verbal assaults, and was spit on and shoved, among other things. She

submitted forty different complaints of harassment to her superiors. No action was taken.

Franchina filed a suit in a federal district court against the city, asserting that she had been

subjected to a hostile work environment as a result of her gender in violation of Title VII. The

city argued that Franchina had presented no evidence to support her claim. A jury issued a

verdict in her favor and awarded damages. The city appealed.

• What does “Title VII” refer to?

• Answer

• Title VII is part of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It relates to employment discrimination.

Title VII prohibits both intentional and unintentional discrimination against applicants,

employees, and union members on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, or

gender.

Issue Was the evidence sufficient to support the jury’s verdict of a hostile work environment?

Decision

Yes. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit affirmed the judgment. “The abuse Lori

Franchina suffered at the hands of the Providence Fire Department is nothing short of

abhorrent. . . . Employers should be cautioned that turning a blind eye to blatant discrimination

does not generally fare well under anti-discrimination laws like Title VII.”

Reason A hostile work environment exists when a workplace is infused with discriminatory insults and

behavior so pervasive or severe that it changes the conditions of the victim’s employment. In

this case, the intimidating remarks and ridicule directed toward Franchina were shown to be

motivated by her gender. The male firefighters’ repeated use of derogatory, gender-specific

epithets—such as slut, whore, bitch, and Frangina (a combination of her last name and the

word vagina)—was sufficient evidence of sexual harassment to support the jury’s verdict. “This

type of sexually based animus [hostility] is a hallmark of Title VII.”

But there was more. Title VII prohibits subjecting the members of one gender to conditions of

employment to which members of the other gender are not exposed. Evidence showed that

within the Providence fire department female firefighters were treated as less competent—

unless they were perceived as willing to have sex with the male firefighters. “This sampling of

evidence demonstrates that the accumulated effect . . . taken together constitutes a hostile

work environment.”

• How could the city have avoided liability for Franchina’s claim of a hostile-work

environment at the fire station?

• Answer

• Instead of ignoring Franchina’s numerous complaints of sexual harassment, the city’s

management could have responded to her complaints by taking reasonable care to

prevent and promptly correct any sexually harassing behavior. Specifically, the city could

have held employee meetings to educate employees on sexual harassment, created

new anti-harassment policies, or had someone from human resources investigate the

work environment.

Critical Thinking Question

-Legal Environment What steps might an employer take to avoid the circumstances that

occurred in the Franchina case?