A former employee of the dating app Tinder filed suit against the company for alleged sexual harassment and retaliation she experienced by a manager.

Tinder moved to dismiss the complaint asserting that the employee signed away her rights to be heard in court because of the company’s arbitration agreement. Mandatory arbitration agreements have come under fire in Silicon Valley recently – with Google agreeing to stop the practice of requiring employees’ claims to be heard through arbitration, which is generally less public and denies the opportunity for presentation of evidence before a jury.

The actual substance of the Tinder claim further evidences challenges confronting the company, which boasts significant profit by suggesting “matches” for users based on their dating preferences. Companies should take a page from tech companies and implement training and detailed policies on surrounding harassment. A failure to do so can result in significant liability.

If you have any questions about this or any other Labor and Employment topic, please contact me at tstringham@offitkurman.com or 703-745-1849

ABOUT THEODORA STRINGHAM

tstringham@offitkurman.com | 703-745-1849

Theodora Stringham assists individuals, businesses, and organizations with growing successfully while minimizing liability. Focusing on real estate and personnel needs, Ms. Stringham executes sustainable plans for real estate development and employee matters. She provides comprehensive representation for everyday growth issues, including, but not limited to, re-zonings, site plan approvals, eminent domain/valuation concerns, employment discrimination, and disciplinary issues. Ms. Stringham’s scope of representation ranges from identifying potential liability and providing counseling/trainings, all the way through representation at trial.

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