An 8th Circuit case supported the affirmative defense that would otherwise make an employer vicariously liable for a supervisor’s actionable sexual or racial harassment of an employee. The defense only applies when there has been no tangible employment action taken against the alleged harassed employee and requires showing that (a) the employer exercised “reasonable care to prevent and correct promptly any sexual harassing behavior” and (b) the employee ‘unreasonably failed to take advantage of any preventive or corrective opportunities provided by the employer or to avoid harm otherwise.” Although the employees argued that the BNSF policy had not been enforced, the court found that it had a comprehensive anti-harassment policy, and its prompt and effective response when it was notified of the harassment in question allowed for no conclusion other than the company exercised reasonable care to prevent and promptly correct the behavior. In regard to unreasonably failing to take advantage of any preventative or corrective opportunities, the employees agreed that they had taken eight months to actually file a complaint Prompt action was then taken, putting the employee on administrative leave and terminating him less than two weeks later. Suggesting that fear of retaliation, in fact, should be an explanation of delay, the court found there was no record here to suggest any prior retaliation or threats of retaliation by the employer. Moreover, the court found that the likely reason for the delay was the gathering of further evidence against the harasser, and this did not make the delay in reporting reasonable. Crawford, et al. v. BNSF Railway Company (8th Cir. 2012).