Senor Frog’s operator settles sexual harassment lawsuit

The former operator of the now-closed Senor Frog’s restaurant and bar in Waikiki will pay $350,000 to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit on behalf of 13 female workers, including three teenage girls.

Restaurant managers were among those involved in the alleged harassment.

La Rana Hawaii LLC and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission agreed to terms settling the claims that the young women were allegedly sexually harassed or retaliated against between 2007 and 2012.

The EEOC previously settled with Honolulu-based Altres Inc., the company contracted to provide human resource services for La Rana Hawaii, for $150,000 in April. That settlement also included EEOC training for its employees.

Senor Frog’s, a once-popular Mexican restaurant and bar in the Royal Hawaiian Center, opened in 2007 but abruptly closed in August 2012 after failed lease negotiations.

The three-year settlement with La Rana stipulates that if it chooses to open another restaurant or reopen Senor Frog’s in Hawaii, it is required to create and distribute an anti-harassment policy along with annual training for all restaurant employees to prevent future instances of sexual harassment, discrimination and retaliation.

"Our young workers are all too often the targets of the most insidious forms of sexual harassment, which can spread like wildfire at work," said Anna Y. Park, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Los Angeles District Office, which includes Hawaii in its jurisdiction. "Employers who fail to fulfill their moral and legal obligation to prevent and immediately stop the sexual abuse of its young workers will answer to the EEOC."

The EEOC said it will monitor compliance with the agreement.

In December 2011 the federal agency filed a lawsuit against the operator of Senor Frog’s, later amending its complaint to charge that at least 10 female staffers were sexually harassed by several male employees, including managers. The EEOC alleged that the managers subjected employees to sexual comments, language and advances, and unwelcome physical contact. The agency further alleged that some employees were subjected to retaliation after complaining about the alleged harassment. The EEOC also alleged that the women were also treated less favorably than men in the workplace, such as being passed over for promotions, being assigned less favorable shifts and earning less than their male counterparts.

The lawsuit, which named five managers and three top executives, alleged daily groping of at least 10 female servers, hostesses and bartenders; explicit sexual remarks and propositions, including demands for sexual intercourse and favors; and, in one instance, a male manager exposing his genitals. The female workers, who were also pushed to drink alcohol and have sex with top executives visiting the Waikiki establishment, were in their teens and early 20s, the complaint said.

The lawsuit claimed that the behavior was condoned by Senor Frog’s owner, Alejandro Shoer, and CEO David Krouham.

The Waikiki restaurant was one of more than a dozen Senor Frog’s restaurants operating in Mexico, the U.S. and the Caribbean.