Idaho agency: Worker’s lawsuit involves illegal recordings

An Idaho agency says recordings made by a former worker of her unwitting co-workers as part of a sex discrimination lawsuit are illegal and shouldn’t be allowed in an upcoming trial.

The Idaho Department of Fish and Game on Friday says in court documents the worker violated federal and state law at least five times by recording conversations in which she wasn’t present.

The lawsuit filed in November 2017 in U.S. District Court seeks $100,000 in damages. It includes an allegation that a male supervisor threatened to strangle the female employee with an extension cord.

The agency denies that allegation and says the illegal recording it’s based on doesn’t substantiate it.

The agency says the former worker spent dozens of hours recording co-workers after a significant number of fish died at a hatchery, resulting in the employee receiving a warning letter in April 2015.