A Portland woman is suing her former employer, claiming the CEO of the company harassed her after she had a “menstruation accident” at the office.

Lydia Groenendyk rushed home to change clothes, told the CEO of Trailhead Marketing in Northeast Portland why she was absent and then immediately was bombarded with inappropriate comments, according to her lawsuit and Portland attorney Michael Fuller. The suit claims that the CEO also told Groenendyk’s co-workers about her accident, which happened Tuesday.

The lawsuit was filed Saturday in Multnomah County Circuit Court.

The suit currently seeks $1 but says Groenendyk intends to seek punitive damages at a later date.

A phone call to Trailhead Marketing wasn’t returned Saturday. The CEO also didn’t immediately respond to a request from The Oregonian/OregonLive for comment Saturday. The lawsuit lists only the company as a defendant, and does not identify the CEO by name.

The lawsuit claims that the CEO created a hostile working environment “so severe and persistent that no reasonable person in Ms. Groenendyk’s position would feel comfortable returning to work.” Groenendyk, 32, resigned from her job in human resources that same day, her attorney says.

Groenendyk’s lawyer shared an exchange he said unfolded between Groenendyk and the CEO after she texted to explain that she needed to go home because she had bled through her underwear. According to the exchange, her boss texted back “Why are you not prepared,” “Go to fred’s and buy new panties and tampons,” and “it sounds like you need to go to the doctor before you bleed out.”

Groenendyk responded “This isn’t a joke”, “Its not a matter of preparedness”, and “Its a matter of being a female and having an accident,” according to the texts provided to The Oregonian/OregonLive.

The lawsuit also says the CEO called Groenendyk and said he had the right to question her about the accident, he didn’t need to apologize and she had to return to work immediately or suffer consequences.

The lawsuit alleges that Trailhead Marketing violated Oregon law by subjecting her to harassment and discrimination based on her sex.

-- Aimee Green

agreen@oregonian.com

o_aimee

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