Teen Steak ‘n Shake Worker’s Sexual Harassment Jury Award Upheld

Steak n’ Shake Inc. must pay a teen server who was sexually harassed by older male workers $50,000 in punitive damages, the Sixth Circuit ruled Friday, rejecting the company’s contention that the award was constitutionally excessive because she only won $1,308 in actual damages.

The unpublished ruling also rejected the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s argument that the punitive damages awarded to Hannah Corbin necessarily didn’t raise constitutional due process concerns because it was lower than the $300,000 maximum damages a company the size of Steak n’ Shake Inc. can be liable for under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The EEOC filed an amicus brief supporting Corbin in the case.