As it turns out, Ms. Souto-Coons was one of hundreds of former Sterling employees who described a corporate culture polluted by sexual aggression, gender discrimination and abuses of power, according to newly released documents
that are part of a private class-action arbitration case.
“None of the 69,000 class members have brought legal claims in this arbitration for sexual harassment or sexual impropriety.”
Signet declined to make Mr. Light available for an interview on Tuesday.
“It’s critical to understand that an arbitration claim was brought against Sterling in 2008
that alleged gender discrimination in pay and promotion,” the company said in its statement.
“Not only is it unfair to the women, it’s unfair to the public.”
Cliff Palefsky, a civil rights and employment lawyer in San Francisco, said
that the sexual harassment claims were relevant to the case because they illustrated the work environment at Sterling
The accusations of sexual harassment are included in statements employees made about pay
and promotion disparities, and the accusers have sought to link the accusations to their wages.
Joseph M. Sellers, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, has been trying to make the documents public for more than a year, motivated by Sterling employees like Ms. Souto-Coons, who had heard anecdotal corroboration of their experiences
but had never seen the statements from their colleagues.
Signet Jewelers Limited, the parent company of Sterling, said on Tuesday
that it had investigated the claims of sexual misconduct and found them to be without merit.