No workplace where the words "anal bleaching" are mentioned publicly can be a safe or sane workplace. A lawsuit over that, and a bevy of other comments including inquiries into female executive assistants' "protein intake" filed against a former San Francisco venture capitalist has been settled for an undisclosed figure this week, according to court filings.
Valleywag brings us news of the resolution of the 2013 sexual harassment lawsuit filed against former CMEA Capital chief operating partner John Haag by three of his former EAs.
Central to Haag's style, according to the lawsuit, were such locker-room worthy asides as asking a female investor-relations employee if she knew why porn stars bleached their butts, and informing his coworkers that he enjoyed sniffing his tenants' underwear when discovered in the laundry room dryer.
These and other "shockingly lurid" accusations — like the time Haag asked a female employee eating a stick of string cheese about her "protein intake" — led to Haag's dismissal from the firm and the lawsuit against him and CMEA, Fortune first reported.
We don't know how much money changed hands, but it appears Haag was let go from CMEA prior to the suit's filing in 2013, according to his LinkedIn. It also seems that senior-level management, including the CFO, knew about Haag's behavior but "did nothing to stop it," the lawsuit alleges.
CMEA invests in tech firms like "mobile-marketplace" Zaarly as well as pharmaceutical firms. And, hopefully now, some decent human beings.