A Butler County employee has amended a 2012 sexual discrimination complaint filed against her employer.

The Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission this month notified the county that Margaret Abersold, administrative assistant to Commissioner Jim Eckstein, amended her complaint.

Abersold now alleges the county continued to allow discrimination to occur.

She claims to have received a Jan. 4, 2013, letter from Commissioner Bill McCarrier, board chairman, reprimanding her and cites an April 10 speech by Commissioner Dale Pinkerton disparaging her integrity and professionalism.

Abersold declined to comment, saying she wanted to maintain the confidentiality of the process.

McCarrier refuted there was any validity to her claims.

“I don’t think there’s any merit to it,” he said. “It’s always disappointing to spend county resources to investigate these petty claims.”

Pinkerton said there was nothing inappropriate in his speech.

“I just gave them facts,” he said.

Eckstein defended Abersold.

“Absolutely, I think it’s valid, but it’s not for me to say,” he said, referring to a pending decision by the PHRC. “We’ll find out in time.”

Eckstein questioned how it’s deemed appropriate for McCarrier to reprimand Eckstein’s assistant.

“I don’t get it,” Eckstein said.

The amended complaint is dually filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which determined in December 2012 there was insufficient evidence of discrimination.

Under the original complaint, Abersold alleged McCarrier, Pinkerton and three county administration employees did nothing to protect her rights during two public meetings in 2012.

She claimed two Eckstein critics over two meetings accused her of abusing compensatory time and purposely writing erroneous meeting minutes.

Following the complaints, McCarrier and Pinkerton outvoted Eckstein to alter those meeting minutes.

The amended complaint alleges the Jan. 4 letter and Pinkerton’s speech were retaliation for the original filing. Eckstein agreed that was the case.