Settlement ends lawsuit over server's claims of sexual harassment at Erie restaurant

A settlement has closed out a federal lawsuit in which a female server sued an Erie restaurant over claims of sexual harassment and sexual discrimination.

The restaurant, Pineapple Eddie, denied the claims. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

The settlement, reached through mediation, ends Pineapple Eddie's chance to have the lawsuit tossed with no deal whatsoever.

The settlement also ends the chance for the plaintiff, who no longer works at the restaurant, to further detail her claims and present her case to a jury in U.S. District Court in Erie.

The plaintiff sued Pineapple Eddie and its chef, Jean Paul, in October. She claimed Paul, who is also the husband of one of the restaurant's owners, harassed her by slapping and grabbing her buttocks and by making "inappropriate and sexual comments," in person and via text, according to the suit.

The suit claimed the plaintiff worked at Pineapple Eddie "for several years" until she was "was forced to resign from her position as server" in September 2022 "due to the sexually hostile environment." The plaintiff claimed she reported Paul's behavior to the management of Pineapple Eddie after she resigned, but that the restaurant did nothing to reprimand him.

Restaurant denies 'any unlawful employment practices'

Pineapple Eddie, 1402 West 10th St. at the corner of Weschler Avenue, denied the claims in a response filed in court on Jan. 2. The restaurant said the server was never harassed or discriminated against, and that she resigned voluntarily without reporting concerns.

"Defendants deny that they engaged in any unlawful employment practices" against the server "or any other employee," Pineapple Eddie said in its response.

Before the case proceeded beyond the response, the parties entered mediation, a standard practice in civil cases in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, which is based in Pittsburgh and includes the Erie Division. A mediator met with the parties in private on Feb. 23 and resolved the case, according to court records.

Pittsburgh-based U.S. District Court Judge Cathy Bissoon, who was assigned the case, closed it on Feb. 27. Her court order said the case "has been settled."

A lawyer for the plaintiff, Elizabeth Tuttle, of Pittsburgh, did not respond to an email seeking comment. A lawyer for Pineapple Eddie and Paul, Lisa Presta, of Erie, cited a confidentiality agreement and declined comment.

The Erie Times-News is not naming the plaintiff because her claims involve sexual harassment. The lawsuit identifies her by name and states that she is a resident of Erie County.

Text messages central to server's claims against restaurant

Jean Paul, the only individual defendant in the suit, is the husband of Adrienne Paul, who co-owns and manages Pineapple Eddie with her sister, Karen Thomas, according to Pineapple Eddie's response filed in court. The response confirmed that Jean Paul is a chef, but stated that he has no supervisory authority over the servers.

One of Pineapple Eddie's defenses, according to the response, was that Jean Paul was not the server's supervisor as defined under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which the plaintiff cited in making her claims. The response also said Pineapple Eddie was unaware of the server's concerns, despite the restaurant informing all its employees of its "comprehensive anti-harassment policies and complaint procedures."

In her suit, the plaintiff claimed Jean Paul asked her several times in person, "When are you gonna let me take you out?" and that she never encouraged or acquiesced to his behavior.

Also, the suit claimed Paul made comments to the plaintiff that "indicated he knew that the Plaintiff's family was dependent on the income that she received from her position."

The suit claimed that Paul brushed up against the server's buttocks and grabbed and slapped them. Two weeks before the server resigned, the suit claimed, a slap from Paul left a bruise in the shape of a partial handprint on her left buttock.

The suit claimed the conduct "would usually take place" in areas that security cameras did not monitor. The suit claimed that Paul told the server he knew where the cameras were.

The suit claimed that Paul sent the server inappropriate text messages. In one message, the suit claimed, Paul told the server he had "'fantasies' about the Plaintiff the night before." In another text, the suit claimed, Paul asked the server to send him a photo of her new hairstyle. The server said she did not comply.

In its response, Pineapple Eddie specifically addressed several of the plaintiff's claims as it denied any inappropriate behavior.

Regarding the security cameras, Pineapple Eddie said Paul told the server "that when she drank shots of alcohol during her work shift, she should try to avoid being within the view of the camera."

Regarding the text messages, Pineapple Eddie denied that Paul "sent inappropriate, unwelcome or unlawful" messages to the server. The response also stated, "it is admitted that Paul asked in a single text message on one occasion to see (the server's) hairstyle."

Contact Ed Palattella at epalattella@timesnews.com. Follow him on X @ETNpalattella.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Deal ends server's claims of sexual harassment at Erie PA restaurant