Hip-hop magazine editor-turned-employment discrimination plaintiff Kim Osorio was compensated by a jury in New York with a multi-million dollar verdict this week, but the actual amount of that award is now being disputed by the defendants, The Source and some of its key personnel, and their attorneys.

The workplace described by Osorio’s attorney’s filings in the case sound like a nightmarishly clichéd hostile environment - something Saturday Night Live might make up in a sketch about such a place: women workers referred to as “bitches” by male colleagues, office “decor” consisting of posters depicting G-string-clad women … even porn films being played in the mailroom. Yet, the jury rejected Osorio’s harassment claim, instead finding for her on the retaliation claim, which was based on Osorio’s filing of an internal complaint, refusal to withdraw it after request, and her subsequent firing in a heated, vulgarity-laced phone call with her superiors.

However, now the attorneys for the defendants claim the jury’s verdict was actually much less than the initially-reported $15 million, and was instead $7.5 million. The plaintiff’s attorney disputes this and points out that had any clarification been needed, the appropriate time to request it from the court would have been during the trial, after the verdict was rendered, when the jury was still available to be polled or questioned by the court.

Million-dollar verdicts make headlines, certainly. But they are few and far between, and workers who’ve been subjected to such discrimination, harassment and/or retaliation should take pause before assuming such a verdict is available for the asking. A host of factors must align for such a verdict - including egregious facts, sympathetic plaintiffs, irreproachable witnesses, and good law. Also, as most people who have been subjected to such harassing behavior can attest, the verdict and the award can be the least of the notable attributes of the entire experience, as many find themselves reliving the nightmare of harassment and discrimination for quite awhile afterwards. Counseling can help, as can setting challenging career goals and working towards them, perhaps in conjunction with job counseling and retraining when appropriate.

Sources:

MusicRooms: The Source to Pay Out Over Editor Firing

MSN Money: Jury Award to Source Ex-Editor Disputed

Jottings by an Employer’s Lawyer: $15.5 MDV in the Big Apple