Coach Store Boss Sued For Irritating Sexual Harassment

Actors on The Office experience an inappropriate moment similar to what former Coach employee Oscar Bravo claims he endured.

A former employee at Coach's flagship Manhattan store is suing the company and his former boss, who he says subjected him to an endless litany of juvenile double entendres and sexual harassment. Oscar Bravo, a former stockroom clerk at the Madison Avenue store, also claims upper management ignored his repeated complaints about supervisor Brandon Williams. Bravo says the annoying behavior included come-ons from Williams to look at his "weiner" on days he brought his pet dachsund to work. "He would say, 'Ok, I have a big weiner, you wanna come see my weiner?'," Oscar Bravo tells the Daily News. "I would say, 'Get the hell out of here, nobody wants to see that.'"

Williams comes off as a gay version of Michael Scott from The Office in the lawsuit, and is accused of doing other inappropriate things like donning a Coach woman's bikini and sticking his finger in Bravo's ear after he licked it. Another time he allegedly tugged at the strings of Bravo's apron and panted, "I am undressing you, did you like that?" Informed about the lawsuit by a reporter, Williams only response was, "Interesting."

Bravo finally quit after two years spent fending off Williams's alleged advances, and he'd also like everyone to know something else: "I'm not gay. I don't know why he would have any reason to assume I was interested." Well, Bravo did give Williams a Hershey's Kiss on one occasion, so can he really blame the allegedly lecherous supervisor for hugging him from behind, tickling him and "gleefully" cooing, "Oh you gave me a kiss!"? Mixed messages, honey!

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By John Del Signore in News on September 17, 2009 12:42 PM

Comments [rss]

NannyState

The Hershey's Kiss was ok but what his boss really wanted was a Hershey kiss.

NYDirk

Oscar Bravo?

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?

angry_pickle

It would not surprise me if this happens all the time at fashion companies ... that you have to tolerate unwanted and relentless sexual innuendo from the creative gay ruling class.

ed_Extinct

Oscar Bravo vs. Bravo Whiskey.

Thespis

Seriously -- Oscar Bravo? Isn't that golfer slang for "Out of Bounds?"

How oddly appropriate.

robingee

I thought it was aircraft call letters. Meet out kids, Oscar and Delta Bravo.

ides_of_march

Anybody sticks a finger in my ear they will get a broken fucking nose.

robingee

Don't worry dude, I'm sure no one wants to do that.

HymietownHero

Really? I feel like a more appropriate response would be a better prank. Wet willy retaliation shouldn't result in spilt blood or time in Court (unless the wet willy was actually a soggy penis - then punch away).

ANGRYGOD11

Ever wonder how little sexual harassment women would face if the clown bothering them faced her angry, hairy brothers (holding baseball bats, of course) in the dark parking lot at the end of the day?

Thespis

Same here. (Unless it's a hot girl.)

protopop

The ending of this post is unsettling to me. The "Mixed messages, honey!" line is either mocking the alleged victim for his claims, taunting him with some homophobic overtones, or partially blaming him for the boss' behavior. Would you be so flippant if the accuser were a woman? This is asexual harassment case, and this post only creates an understanding that sexual harassment, particularly in a case involving two men, is worthy of ridicule.

BTW, it's not clear from the original article whether the alleged victim gave the boss a Hershey's kiss as a gift or whether he merely "handed" it to him.

robingee

Pretty sure John was kidding around. He kind of does that. ALL the time.

protopop

Laughing at my own typo - "asexual harassment."

MT

Since when is a wet willy sexual harrassment?

ides_of_march

Barf!

Jen Chung

I sort of get the weiner dog jokes (who wouldn't make that joke?!), but the licked finger into employee's ear thing is definitely weird.

Rocknrope

Nothing wrong with a wet willy between employees now and again.

Now, if he did another high school prank, like putting his ballzak on Bravo's shoulder when he was sitting down, that'd be another story.