Group files suit against Coldwell Banker Americana

At press time, Coldwell Banker had not issued a response to the lawsuit on its Web site, www.coldwellbanker.com.

Watchous worked for Coldwell Banker Americana, a franchise of the global real estate brokerage Coldwell Banker, for three years, serving as marketing director.

According to a Lambda Legal news release, Watchous is suing the company on the grounds of breach of contract, and Laurie Scofield, office manager for the Hutchinson, Kan., real estate brokerage, owned by Shirley Brooks, for improper interference with the contract.

The lawsuit alleges that although Scofield knew that Watchous is gay, she developed romantic feelings for him and started making unwanted sexual advances toward him, including suggesting that she could change his sexual orientation if given one night with him, and writing and giving him a suggestive poem.

According to the lawsuit, Watchous complained to Brooks about the harassment, but rather than addressing the issue, he was fired from his job.

In an e-mail to Watchous, the company admitted that he was fired because of a “bump in the road” with Scofield and because of “some of the concerns other agents had with your lifestyle.”

The e-mail also expressed appreciation for Watchous and his accomplishments while employed.

“Imagine being fired for something that has nothing to do with the value of your work,” said Ken Upton, senior staff attorney in Lambda Legal’s south central regional office in Dallas.

Lambda Legal is committed to full recognition of the civil rights of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, transgender individuals and people with HIV.

Kansas, he added, does not have a law that expressly prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in the workplace.

However, the company does have its own rules about fairness in the workplace.

As a franchisee of Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corp., which is a subsidiary of Cendant Corp., it is bound by Cendant’s corporate code of conduct that expressly forbids employment discrimination based on gender or sexual orientation.

Additionally, Coldwell Banker Americana’s sexual harassment policy states that “Sexual harassment interferes with work performance (and) creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment. … It will not be tolerated.”

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