NATION

NATION
Last-minute talks delaysexual harassment trial
CHICAGO-- Last-minute talks between the government and soap-maker Dial Corp. interrupted the scheduled beginning of trial in a lawsuit accusing the firm's male workers of creating a hostile environment for female colleagues.
Attorneys for the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said some 90 female employees at Dial's Aurora plant west of Chicago were groped on the breasts and buttocks, called names and forced to look at pornography. Attorneys for the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based company said the government exaggerated the charges and that the male workers who caused the problems had been fired years ago.
The lawsuit is the biggest sexual harassment case brought by the EEOC since the Mitsubishi Motors of North America lawsuit five years ago which ended in a $34 million settlement.
Associated Press