Report: Mariners executives accused of harassment, team made payments to three women
The Seattle Mariners have “made amends” with two former female employees who made allegations of harassment against current team president and CEO Kevin Mather.
The Mariners released statements from majority owner John Stanton and Mather on Wednesday in the wake of a report from The Seattle Times that detailed accusations of inappropriate language and treatment by Mather and two other top executives – then-team president Chuck Armstrong and then-executive vice president Bob Aylward.
The newspaper reported the club had made settlement payments of about $500,000 to two former female executive assistants, including one who worked for Mather and another who worked for Aylward. The Times also reported that there was another settlement with a third woman, who said she felt pressured to kiss Armstrong.
The Mariners didn’t deny but also didn’t specifically address the settlements in question. Instead, the organization’s lawyer, Fred Rivera, issued a written statement noting broadly that the team on rare occasions has “made financial compensation to employees and exacted financial compensation from employees to remedy” violations.
Armstrong retired in January 2014 and Aylward retired in November 2017, though he remains the chair of Root Sports Northwest.
The Times first reported that the allegations occurred in 2009-10, when Mather was the team’s vice president of finance and ballpark operations.
“We used this as an opportunity to review and address our workplace culture, and retained an outside consultant to advise us and conduct training for all employees,” Stanton said in a release. “In the years since, we have maintained our commitment to training and ensuring a workplace that is inclusive, safe and supportive.
“I want to be very clear – the Seattle Mariners organization is 100 percent committed to maintaining a workplace environment in which every employee, partner, and fan feels safe, respected and comfortable. We do not tolerate harassment or discrimination of any kind.”
Mather apologized for his actions in his statement.
“As I was coming up through the ranks, I thought I needed to be a hard-driving manager, but I came to realize that I sometimes came across as intimidating or even mean,” Mather said. “I also participated in banter and was at times overly familiar, in ways that I came to realize were inappropriate for the workplace.
“I am truly sorry for the people I hurt and how I came across.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Mariners president and CEO Kevin Mather released this statement in response to Seattle Times report on workplace culture and sexual harassment issues, specifically between 2009-10 <a href="https://t.co/I8xpoZ4nvg">pic.twitter.com/I8xpoZ4nvg</a></p>— TJ Cotterill (@TJCotterill) <a href="https://twitter.com/TJCotterill/status/1022177346999091200?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 25, 2018</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The Times reported that a Mariners executive assistant said Mather repeatedly rubbed her back and made suggestive comments that made her feel uncomfortable in accusations that first surfaced in 2009.
Stanton took over as the Mariners chairman and chief executive officer for the Mariners in August 2016 and is now the chairman and managing partner.
Stanton’s role with the Mariners dates to 2000 when he joined the Mariners’ ownership group, four years after Mather joined the organization as its vice president of finance and administration.
Stanton said the allegations against Mather and ensuing settlements were considered when the Mariners chose to promote Mather to president in 2014 and CEO last year. Though this is the first time the information has been made public.
“We would not have promoted Kevin if we had any doubt about his ability to lead and to meet our high standards,” Stanton said.
Video of female fans
The Times also reported a video shot by personnel at Safeco Field shot, compiled and archived up-close footage of two women sitting in the crowd during a Mariners game in late 2015. The footage, shot by TV cameras stationed throughout the stadium, lingered on one woman with a revealing top and on the other woman when she was briefly exposed after her dress hiked up.
The clips were compiled in a Dropbox folder titled “9-29-15 Blondes.”
The Mariners said the footage was shot by freelance TV camera operators hired by ROOT Sports and/or the visiting team’s television crew, and video appeared to have been taken during commercial breaks.
Rivera said the footage was compiled for security purposes, but Randy Adamack, the team’s special adviser to the chairman and CEO, said the camera attention on the women shouldn’t have happened. He added that the team was discussing the issue internally and with ROOT Sports personnel.
The Mariners are the majority owner of ROOT Sports Northwest.
The Times reported that the folder was deleted shortly after the newspaper conducted an interview with Mariners personnel.
Stanton said the Mariners “take issue with the way the Times represented” the incident.
“The Mariners do not record gratuitous videos of women in the stands. Period,” Stanton said.
Stanton explained that the clips were from a security incident that occurred in a Sept. 29, 2015, game against the Houston Astros, which ultimately involved paramedics and other personnel. The Times also reported that one woman appeared to have passed out in her seat and received attention from medical personnel.
Though, another 16-second video tracked her walking up the stadium stairs, zooming in on her toward her bare buttocks for several seconds when her dress hiked up.
Stanton stressed that the clips were not shot by Mariners employees.
“The clips were shared with our Director of Security to help in the investigation of the incident,” Stanton said. “Our forensic investigation found no evidence of improper sharing of any similar files with employees or others, which would be against Mariners policies.
“We have taken steps to reinforce our policy and ensure it is well understood across our organization and Root Sports.”
The Seattle Times and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
This story was originally published July 25, 2018 at 1:33 PM.