A company operating ten McDonald’s franchises in Vermont and New Hampshire will pay $1.6m to settle a sex discrimination and retaliation lawsuit filed by state and federal agencies.

Teenage employees at Coughlin Inc’s Randolph, Vermont location were subjected to a hostile working environment by a male night shift manager over a five-year period.

It is alleged the manager touched them inappropriately, hitting and groping their genitals, breasts, and buttocks, according to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) complaint.