Monkey Business

Quoth the SF Chronicle:

Two former employees of the Gorilla Foundation, home to Koko the "talking" ape, have filed a lawsuit contending that they were ordered to bond with the 33-year-old female simian by displaying their breasts. ...

The suit follows complaints filed by [Nancy] Alperin and [Kendra] Keller in January with the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, in which they gave identical reasons for why they were fired: "I refused to expose my breast to perform acts of bestiality with one of the gorillas."

The lawsuit goes into more detail.

One example: "On at least two incidents in mid-to-late June 2004, [Gorilla Foundation president Francine] Patterson intensely pressured Keller to expose herself to Koko while they were working outside where other employees could potentially view Keller's naked body. ... On one such occasion, Patterson said, 'Koko, you see my nipples all the time. You are probably bored with my nipples. You need to see new nipples. I will turn my back so Kendra can show you her nipples.' " ...

The suit says the two women, who never did undress, also worked unpaid overtime and faced unsanitary conditions, including gorilla urine stored in the refrigerator where they kept their lunches, rodents in the food preparation area and exposed wires.

They notified the California Department of Industrial Relations, Division of Occupational Safety and Health, which conducted an inspection last Aug. 5 and issued $300 in fines for various violations that have since been corrected, according to Cal/OSHA spokesman Dean Fryer.

The two women were fired Aug. 6.