PORTLAND – U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe is continuing to press for investigations into allegations of sexual harassment within the U.S. Postal Service.

Snowe asked the Postal Service’s inspector general this week to investigate allegations of widespread sexual harassment within the agency, her spokesman said.

If the inspector general agrees to investigate, the results of the review will help senators determine whether they should hold public hearings about the harassment allegations, said Dave Lackey, Snowe’s press secretary.

Snowe’s request came after reports that sexual harassment cases against the postal agency in southern Maine have resulted in jury awards and settlements of more than $2.5 million.

At least five lawsuits have been filed since 1998. Three of them have been against the agency’s Forest Avenue facility in Portland and two in Biddeford. Each of the lawsuits involved allegations of women being subjected to vulgar gestures, obscene language and insulting comments by male colleagues.

Last month, Snowe asked Sen. Fred Thompson, chairman of the Committee on Governmental Affairs, and Sen. Thad Cochran, chairman of the Subcommittee on International Security, Proliferation and Federal Services, to examine the Postal Service’s sexual harassment record. This week, Snowe wrote to the Inspector General’s Office, Lackey said.

“We think to be thorough and fair, it’s probably better to go this route with the inspector general,” he said. “They’ll look at it and determine to what extent there’s a pattern.

“We have asked that they not only examine the specific Maine cases, but also conduct an examination of cases of harassment nationwide,” he said.

While Snowe’s letter does not guarantee an investigation will take place, Lackey said the senator’s office expects the inspector general will grant the request.

The investigation could take up to six months, he said, and likely will include interviews with postal employees and managers throughout the nation, as well as exhaustive reviews of sexual harassment lawsuits and Equal Employment Opportunity complaints.

The National Organization for Women has labeled the Postal Service a “merchant of shame” for its sexual harassment record, noting that the Postal Service routinely tallies more sexual harassment complaints than any other federal agency.

But Kristin Krathwohl, a Postal Service spokeswoman in Washington, D.C., said the agency maintains its belief that its sexual harassment policies are valid.

“I think for the most part people feel confident with the policies themselves, but there are some problems that need to be addressed,” she said. “I think Elizabeth Johnson [Maine’s district manager] is going to do a good job of addressing it.”