CHARLESTON, W.Va., Dec. 27 (UPI) -- A gay coal miner in West Virginia is suing his employer, charging co-workers in several mines have repeatedly harassed him.
In a lawsuit filed in Kanawha Circuit Court, Sam Hall says he was subjected to verbal abuse and lewd gestures by his supervisors and other miners, even after he complained to management at Spartan Mining Co., The Charleston (W.Va.) Gazette reported.
"Due to management's participation and provocation, most of the pervasive ongoing harassment has been caused or encouraged," states the suit, which names Spartan, a subsidiary of Massey Energy, and foreman Randy Thomas as defendants.
Shane Harvey, Massey's general counsel, called the conduct alleged by Hall "despicable".
"They are serious allegations, and we take them seriously. We are going to investigate it, and if any of them are true, we are going to take action swiftly to remedy the situation," he said.
Hall said the abuse began when he went to work as a "red hat" trainee in November 2005 and continued at four mines.
Hall met with executives who promised to address the issue. They suspended Thomas for three days and transferred Hall to the Slab Camp Mine where he continues to face harassment, the suit maintains. UPI
