A Fells Point woman has filed a $17.6 million lawsuit against General Motors Corp. alleging that she was verbally, physically and sexually harassed while working on the assembly line at the company's Baltimore van plant.

In the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court, Teresa Silver claims that the actions of a supervisor were done openly, in the presence of other employees and supervisors.

Despite having actual knowledge of the harassment and physical abuse, the suit alleges, GM failed to take appropriate action to end the conduct.

General Motors yesterday did not return several telephone calls requesting comment on the lawsuit.

According to the court papers, GM also failed to enforce company policy related to sexual harassment.

Silver alleges also that after filing a complaint last year with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, she was retaliated against by workers and suffered severe humiliation and mental anguish. She said a tire on her car was slit while parked on the plant's employee parking lot.

The EEOC took no action in the complaint but granted Silver a "right-to-sue letter that led to the court filing," said Joseph T. Mallon, an attorney representing Silver.

Silver has been working as an assembly line operator at the Baltimore plant since 1995. Before transferring to Baltimore, she had worked since 1983 at a GM plant in Shreveport, La.

The suit alleges that Silver suffered emotional pain, loss of earnings, humiliation and mental and physical stress.

Pub Date: 9/22/98