Law360 - Employment Authority By Grace Elletson A Michigan federal judge won't toss a suit from a U.S. Postal Service custodian alleging a manager outspoken about his disdain for women made her fear she would be raped when he cornered her in a basement, saying her allegations were severe enough to stay in court. U.S. District Judge Denise Page Hood denied the USPS' motion for summary judgment Wednesday in Sandra Malloy's Title VII and Michigan law sexual harassment suit, discarding the Postal Service's arguments that the conduct the custodian complained about was not severe or pervasive enough to support her suit. "The acts identified by Malloy are more than innocuous differences in the ways men and women interact with each other and went beyond 'simple teasing' and were not isolated comments or incidents," Judge Hood said. Based on the totality of Malloy's allegations, Judge Hood said she has adequately shown that her supervisor's behavior may have interfered with her work performance by creating a hostile environment. The judge pointed to Malloy's allegation that her male supervisor would repeatedly follow her down into the post office basement in a manner that she described as "stalking." Malloy alleged that he would sneak and creep up on her while she was alone in the basement and that this behavior would persist two or three times a week. Malloy said she reported these instances many times to her postmaster and went as far to say that she feared the male supervisor would rape her, Judge Hood said. The judge also highlighted Malloy's allegations that she saw the male supervisor undressing upward of 20 times in the break room even after she told him to use a restroom if he needed to change. Malloy said she complained about the undressing 10 times. Concerns about the male supervisor largely went unanswered by Malloy's postmaster, Judge Hood said, until Malloy had to file a complaint with upper management. After that final complaint, the male supervisor was put on administrative leave and had to undergo counseling, but the postmaster only verbally reprimanded him repeatedly, the judge said. "No actions were taken by the postmaster even though the postmaster also did not appreciate" the male supervisor's actions, Judge Hood said. Malloy also alleged in her suit, filed against USPS in September 2021, that the male supervisor spoke negatively about women on the job, stating he did not think they were equal to men. He said at one point that women should not be leaders and that's why he passed down a family business to his son, according to her suit. She also claimed that the male supervisor touched her inappropriately. When she was folding a tarp on the job, the supervisor insisted he help her despite Malloy's assurances she didn't need his assistance, and while assisting, he touched her breasts multiple times, according to the suit. In another instance, while Malloy was using a ladder, the male supervisor began looking up her untucked shirt, she said. Later, when Malloy was bent over wringing out a rag, the supervisor grabbed her hips from behind and rubbed his erection on her behind, according to her suit. When Malloy reported these instances to her postmaster, the higher-up didn't take any action to discipline the male supervisor, according to her suit. Attorney who represents Malloy, said her client is pleased with the judge's ruling and will continue "seeking civil justice" in the case. A USPS spokesperson declined to comment. Malloy is represented by The Fierberg National Law Group PLLC. USPS is represented by Brittany D. Parling of the Michigan United States Attorney's Office. The case is Malloy v. DeJoy, case number 1:21-cv-12094, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.