Orland Park resolves lawsuit filed by seasonal worker

Former employee alleged harassment because he is gay

Orland Park will pay $112,500 to settle a lawsuit brought by a former seasonal worker who alleged he was subjected to hostile workplace conditions that included alleged physical violence because he is gay.

Liam Walsh filed the lawsuit in July 2021 after not being rehired as a seasonal employee for the village’s Recreation and Parks Department, and alleged he was retaliated against after he disclosed his sexual orientation to co-workers in early 2020.

Walsh and the village agreed to the settlement earlier this month. As part of the settlement, the village denies any liability or wrongdoing.

Walsh had worked summers for the Recreation and Parks Department from 2016 through 2020, but was not rehired for the 2021 season despite good job performance reviews, according to the lawsuit.

Walsh alleges a co-worker slapped and beat him and called him derogatory slurs on the job at some point after Walsh disclosed his sexual orientation, according to the lawsuit, which had sought at least $250,000 in damages.

He is represented by the Chicago law firm The Garfinkel Group, and the firm said Thursday Walsh could not comment on the settlement.

“However, it is our fervent hope that going forward, the Village of Orland Park and all municipalities in Illinois dedicate more resources and training to ensure that their employees and citizens are protected from bias or worse, any violence stemming from prejudice. All employees in this state should feel and be safe in their place of work,” the firm said.

The co-worker allegedly “engaged in a protracted campaign of homophobia, gender-motivated violence, sexual harassment, retaliation and generally hateful behavior toward Walsh,” according to the lawsuit.

The village, in the settlement, says “it was not aware of any alleged misconduct until nearly a year after the fact, and once informed of alleged misconduct and workplace violence acted swiftly to remove multiple employees.”

The payment to Walsh includes attorney fees and litigation costs, according to the settlement, and Walsh also agrees to withdraw the complaint.

Walsh claims retaliation began after he disclosed his sexual orientation to co-workers early in the 2020 season.

After Walsh came out as gay, a co-worker was initially “standoffish and unfriendly,” according to the suit. The alleged hostile behavior escalated to include profanity and physical violence.

One day, while sitting outside an equipment shed, Walsh asked the co-worker about his unfriendly demeanor, according to the lawsuit.

The co-worker allegedly stood up, walked over to where Walsh was sitting and slapped Walsh across the face, according to the lawsuit. The co-worker took a cap Walsh was wearing, tore it up, threw it in the trash and walked away, according to the suit.

Walsh told a supervisor who witnessed the alleged attack that he wanted to report the co-worker, but the lawsuits claims the supervisor responded by saying he wanted to “stay out of it.”

On another day, while employees were chalking an athletic field, the co-worker allegedly bumped Walsh and called him a derogatory term about his sexual orientation several times, the complaint alleges.

Walsh approached another supervisor and said he wanted to report the co-worker to human resources, but the supervisor allegedly “begged” Walsh to not report the what happened, according to the lawsuit.

Tensions continued until Aug. 8, 2020, when the co-worker violently attacked Walsh, according to the lawsuit.

The two were assigned a task, and Walsh entered a garage to retrieve tools needed for the job, the suit claims. Walsh asked the co-worker if he was going to help, but the co-worker refused to cooperate, the lawsuit claims.

While Walsh was telling a supervisor about the co-worker’s alleged refusal to cooperate, the co-worker allegedly entered the garage, bore down on him and began beating Walsh, the suit claims.

“[The co-worker] punched Walsh in the eye and continued striking him,” according to the suit. “Walsh then attempted to put his hands up to protect himself from the barrage of blows.”

Walsh, in the lawsuit, sought compensation from the village for lost earnings, attorney fees, emotional distress and other damages. The complaint accused the village of violating Walsh’s protections granted by the Illinois Human Rights Act, the Illinois Gender Violence Act and the Illinois Civil Rights Act.