SCHUYLKILL COUNTY — A woman who cleaned the Schuylkill County Courthouse alleges in a new federal lawsuit that former Commissioner George F. Halcovage Jr. sexually harassed and assaulted her while she worked there. She also claims the county retaliated after she reported his alleged conduct.
The woman filed the lawsuit under the name Jane Doe on , in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
The lawsuit names Schuylkill County, Halcovage, County Administrator Gary Bender, Human Resources Director Anthony Kern and Equal Employment Opportunity Officer Elaine Gilbert as defendants.
Lawsuit Details Alleged Conduct at Courthouse
According to the complaint, Doe began working for a cleaning contractor at the courthouse around January 2022. She says she began cleaning the commissioners’ offices in 2023, when Halcovage allegedly started making unwanted comments about her appearance and contacting her through text messages, Facebook and Snapchat.
The lawsuit alleges Halcovage asked Doe to send him photographs and, on one occasion, touched her genital area without consent while she was cleaning his office.
Doe says she feared rejecting Halcovage’s attention could affect her work because he was a commissioner with influence over county cleaning contracts.
The complaint also alleges Halcovage remained with Doe at the courthouse after 5 p.m. despite restrictions on his access to the building. It claims Bender and Kern were aware of circumstances that should have prompted them to act.
Complaint Describes Report to County Officials
On , Doe emailed Bender, Kern and the county’s other two commissioners to report what she described as sexual harassment and assault, according to the lawsuit.
Doe later met with Gilbert but questioned whether Gilbert could independently investigate a complaint involving Halcovage. Doe alleges she was never informed of the investigation’s outcome.
Cleaning Contract Awarded to Another Company
Nineteen days after Doe’s report, the county awarded its next courthouse cleaning contract to a different company.
Minutes from the , commissioners’ meeting show that Commissioners Gary Hess and Barron Hetherington voted to approve the award. Halcovage was recorded as absent for the vote.
Doe alleges the contract decision was retaliation for her report and that losing the courthouse work cost her income.
The complaint acknowledges that her contractor’s bid lacked required bid security, but alleges Halcovage told her to submit it anyway and represented that he would try to address the requirement. The meeting minutes document the contract award but do not establish why the competing bid was not selected.
Lawsuit Seeks Damages and Jury Trial
The lawsuit seeks damages and a jury trial on claims brought under federal and Pennsylvania anti-discrimination laws.
Doe withheld the cleaning contractor’s name from the complaint, stating that identifying the company could reveal her identity.
The lawsuit contains allegations that have not been decided by the court. The filing and exhibits reviewed for this article did not include responses from the defendants.