GLNews New York: Unpaid interns cannot sue for sexual harassment: judge

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Unpaid interns cannot sue for sexual harassment: judge

NTERN - Unpaid interns really have it rough. No money, no benefits and no legal recourse when groped by a boss, apparently. Syracuse graduate Lihuan Wang sued her supervisor at Phoenix Satellite Television in New York, claiming supervisor Liu Zhengzhu grabbed her butt and tried to kiss her during an unpaid internship in 2010. But a Manhattan federal court judge tossed the sexual harassment charge last week because unpaid interns aren't considered employees and therefore aren't covered by the city's human rights law. "This terrible," Wang's lawyer told the Daily News. "To not have any recourse when this happens is horrendous." Wang, 25, has since moved back to her native China, scarred by the incident. She's not available for comment today and her lawyer won't provide us with a photo. Her lawsuit is moving forward on separate charge that Phoenix refused to hire her for a paid position because she refused to take a trip with Liu to Atlantic City. Phoenix's lawyer said the company doesn't condone sexual harassment and pointed out that the city council has previously whiffed on opportunities to add legal protections for unpaid interns. This discrepancy's not new: Unpaid interns aren't covered by Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, and while local laws can protect them, New York's state and city laws do not.

Lihuan Wang sued her supervisor at Phoenix Satellite Television in New York after inappropriate sexual advances, but a judge says she can’t.

No paycheck, no benefits — and no protection from creeps.

Unpaid interns can’t sue over sexual harassment at work because they don’t count as employees, a judge ruled.

Lihuan Wang, 26, said her boss at Phoenix Satellite Television’s New York bureau grabbed her butt and tried to kiss her while she was an unpaid intern in 2010.

But Manhattan Federal Court Judge Kevin Castel tossed that claim last week, finding that only paid workers are covered by the city’s human rights law.

“Protection of employees does not extend to unpaid interns,” Castel wrote Oct. 3.

He said the City Council has amended the New York City Human Rights Law several times in recent years to cover more situations but has failed to shield interns.

“This is terrible,” seethed Wang’s lawyer, Lynne Bernabei. “There is no logical reason to allow an intern who is young and vulnerable to be sexually harassed.”

City Councilwoman Gale Brewer (D-Manhattan) said Wednesday she will introduce legislation to close the loophole that left Wang out in the cold.

Unpaid workers are particularly vulnerable to harassment and “should be covered,” she said.

Oregon and Washington, D.C., have passed such revisions.

Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, who headed the Council committee that oversaw the last overhaul of the city’s human rights law in 2005, agreed.

“No one should ever be denied protection against sexual harassment in the workplace. Period,” the Democratic mayoral nominee said.

Brewer said the Council was unaware of the issue in 2005.

Wang, 26, was scarred by the encounter and has returned to her native China, her lawyer said.

The lawsuit, filed in January 2013, is moving ahead on the separate charge that Phoenix declined to hire her for a paid job as retaliation when she rebuffed her boss, Zhengzhu Liu, after the grope at his hotel room.

Phoenix fired Liu early last year after another woman came forward with a harassment complaint, said defense lawyer Carter DeLorne.

dbeekman@nydailynews.com

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GLNews New York

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Unpaid interns cannot sue for sexual harassment: judge

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