The ex-girlfriend of Tiger Woods has accused him of sexual harassment, saying he pursued a sexual relationship with her when she was his employee and then forced her to sign a non-disclosure agreement about it – or be fired from her job if she did not, according to a document filed by her attorney Friday in a Florida state court.
“Mr. Woods was Ms. Herman’s boss,” said the attorney for Erica Herman. “On Mr. Woods’s own portrayal of events, he imposed an NDA on her as a condition to keep her job when she began having a sexual relationship with him. A boss imposing different work conditions on his employee because of their sexual relationship is sexual harassment.”
The filing is part of a dispute between them that arose after the couple broke up in October.
Herman worked at Woods’ restaurant, The Woods, in Jupiter, Florida, when they began their relationship.
She filed a lawsuit in October against the trust Woods established for his residence in Florida in 2017, not against the famed golfer himself.
Herman alleged in that public lawsuit that she had an oral tenancy agreement to stay at the residence for about five more years. She claimed more than $30 million damages after she said she was locked out of the home in violation of the agreement.
Then the dispute got more complicated, leading to the court document filed Friday by her attorney, Benjamin Hodas.
“Tiger Woods, the internationally renowned athlete and one of the most powerful figures in global sports, decided to pursue a sexual relationship with his employee, then – according to him – forced her to sign an NDA about it or else be fired from her job,” said the document filed by her attorney. “And, when he became disgruntled with their sexual relationship, he tricked her into leaving her home, locked her out, took her cash, pets, and personal possessions, and tried to strong-arm her into signing a different NDA.”
SOURCE: USA TODAY
