The Sharon Bialek sexual harassment complaint against Herman Cain is the first complaint against the presidential hopeful to go public.
Bialek, a Chicago-area woman, accuses Cain of making unwanted sexual advances against her back in 1997, reports the Chicago Sun-Times. It was not reported whether Bialek had already sued Cain (or whether she can even sue Cain if she wanted to), and so you may be wondering just what is it that Bialek wants by going public now.
Apparently, just an apology and also to provide "a face and a voice" to support other accusers who have so far remained anonymous, reports the Sun-Times.
In 1997, Bialek says that she had met with Cain regarding a job at the National Restaurant Association that Cain ran. At the meeting, Cain allegedly touched Bialek's leg and ran his hand up toward her genitals, before Bialek asked him what he was doing. She says that Cain responded, "you want a job, right?"
As the incident happened 14 years ago, an apology and confession may be all that Bialek can get from Cain. That's because Bialek has well exceeded the statute of limitations to bring any lawsuit against her former prospective employer.
Generally, someone has 180 days from the date of the incident to file a sexual harassment complaint with the state. In addition, someone has 300 days from the incident to file the complaint with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
As you can see, the Sharon Bialek sexual harassment story exceeds both timelines by well over ten years, so the accuser likely has no remedy in court, if indeed that is what she wanted. But she can still seek an apology.
For his part, Herman Cain has denied all allegations by Bialek and other accusers, reports the Sun-Times.
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