Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, November 30, 1994 TAG: 9411300068
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: BOSTON LENGTH: Medium
But when he was told he'd ``either have to have a sex change or a push-up bra'' to get ahead, he decided the price of advancement was too high.
Tinkham is one of the ``Boston Eight,'' eight men who have filed claims of sexual harassment and discrimination against the weight-loss firm.
On Tuesday, the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination said it had found probable cause that three of the men had been discriminated against. Three other cases still were under investigation, while two of the complainants missed filing deadlines.
Commission board Chairman Michael Duffy said investigators found that the three men were passed over for promotions and treated differently than the women.MCAD case workers will mediate negotiations between the company and the men: Joseph Egan, of Boston; Mark Davis, of Nashua, N.H.; and Lauren Webber, of Lynn. All are former employees of Jenny Craig diet centers in the Boston area.
If an agreement cannot be reached, the commission could hold a hearing and eventually order the Del Mar, Calif., based Jenny Craig to pay damages to the men.
Duffy said Jenny Craig officials have cooperated fully in the investigation.
Company officials said in a release the allegations were unwarranted and they were confident of being exonerated.
Tinkham, who quit Jenny Craig in 1993, is among the three men whose claims still are being investigated. Five of the men also have sued the company in Middlesex County Superior Court.
All eight men claim they were denied promotions because of their sex and that they were given poor sales assignments, ordered to perform demeaning tasks and sexually harassed.
The men also complained that male employees were made to wear the same uniforms as the women: white coats and pale blue Jenny Craig neck scarves.
Joseph Egan, 28, of Boston said his female co-workers commented on his impressive biceps and nice eyes. He says a female supervisor asked him to fix her car, and that another female supervisor told him she had dreamed about him naked.
Egan, a former manager of a Jenny Craig program in Burlington, Mass., said nearly everyone associated with the company is female.
Egan is bitter that he was denied a chance to advance in Jenny Craig.
``I want to expose the company,'' he said. ``I want to be paid for what I was worth.''
by CNB