WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Rep. Elizabeth Esty admitted Thursday that she mishandled the harassment of a female staff member by her former chief of staff in the spring of 2016.

“I am sorry that I failed to protect her and provide her with the safe and respectful work environment that every employee deserves,” Esty, D-5th, said in a statement. “I am sorry that I hurt her, her friends, family, and co-workers, and many of my present and former staffers.”

Esty’s statement came just a short time after a report in the Connecticut Post detailed complaints of threats, harassment, and even an assault by former Chief of Staff Tony Baker. According to the report, a woman who worked for Esty said Baker harassed and threatened her after a social gathering.

In an affidavit, she also accused Baker of routinely verbally abusing her and once punching her in the back. The Post doesn’t know the woman’s identity, and detailed her account from the affidavit.

Esty, whose district includes Meriden and Cheshire, admitted to giving Baker a $5,000 severance payment and a favorable recommendation that resulted in a job at Sandy Hook Promise, where he worked until this week, according to the Post.

Esty said she was “horrified and angry to learn that a promising, dedicated former employee of mine was harassed and harmed by my then (now former) chief of staff.”

She launched a review of her office management and investigation into the incident, which found “the threat of violence was not an isolated incident, but part of a pattern of behavior that victimized many of the women on my staff.”

She said she hired a new chief of staff, made changes to the rest of her staff, changed employment policy, and instituted mandatory harassment training.”

“To this survivor, and to anyone else on my team who was hurt by my failure to see what was going on in my office, I am so sorry,” she said in her statement. “I’ve asked myself over and over again, how did I not see this? How could I have let down so many people?”

The Post report and Esty’s apology come as Congress, like workplaces around the country, grapple with allegations of sexual misconduct and mistreatment of employees, largely women. Esty said that “equality and fairness are values I’ve held long before I came to Congress.”

“Now that I am in Congress, it is my responsibility to run an office that is not only safe, but upholds those values and respects staff and their work on behalf of the people of the 5th Congressional District,” she wrote. “I’m inspired by the courage this young woman is demonstrating by speaking up.”

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