In November 2012, Alliant Techsystems Inc. paid $100,000 to settle an EEOC suit alleging that the company violated Title VII when it refused to hire an African-American woman for a technical support job at its offices in Edina because of her race. In December 2019, DSW Shoe Warehouse Inc., a nationwide shoe retailer headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, paid $40,000 and furnished equitable relief throughout the stores in its Midwest Great Lakes Region (including Michigan and Ohio) to resolve a race discrimination lawsuit filed by the EEOC. Ready Mix will be required to modify its policies to ensure that racial harassment is prohibited and a system for investigation of complaints is in place. The EEOC's suit alleged that the company excluded Black applicants for jobs at the company's Little Rock location based upon their race. The lawsuit also alleged that the club retaliated against the Black dancers after one of them filed a complaint with the EEOC, allegedly by reducing their work hours and subjecting them to fines, forcing one of them to quit. The EEOC charged SFI, a fabricator and supplier of heavy-gauge steel and value-added products, with discharging three black employees on the same day because of their race. reopened after dismissal due to bankruptcy Mar. case is very strong against midwifery organizations. Under the three-year conciliation agreement, reached before any lawsuit was filed, Target has discontinued the use of the tests and made changes to its applicant tracking system, the EEOC said. . The five-year consent decree enjoins the sausage company from engaging in future race discrimination, and requires annual Title VII training on employee rights, record-keeping of racial harassment complaints, and annual reports to the EEOC. Washington A lawsuit challenging the abortion pill filed by anti-abortion rights advocates in federal court in Texas has put the spotlight on the judge . The NAACP filed an EEOC charge on behalf of some employees and the EEOC's investigation found that a top company official subjected employees to derogatory racial comments and that there was a noose hanging in the facility. June 20, 2017), reh'g en banc denied (7th Cir. However, the court vacated the $200,000 compensatory damages award as excessive and ruled that the EEOC and Linehan either could accept the remitted amount of $20,000 or hold a new hearing on the issue. Because trial evidence also showed that AA Foundries lacked effective internal procedures to handle discrimination complaints, it must conduct at least one hour of equal employment opportunity training for all employees within 60 days of the court's Oct. 9 order. Racially offensive pictures targeted against minority employees were also posted in the workplace. Complainant had approximately 30 years experience as an RN, supervisor, assistant director, and manager. 15-3201 (7th Cir. The record evidence showed that the selecting official's actions in not choosing complainant for the position were intended to show the White managers that they were not running the region, and that he had a philosophy of rewarding African-American employees who aligned themselves with him instead of those, like complainant, who aligned themselves with White managers. In October 2010, a South Point, Ohio-based contractor that constructs and installs water and sewer lines entered into a 5-year consent decree to settle claims that it violated Title VII when it failed to stop a White foreman and employees from racially harassing and retaliating against a Black laborer working at defendant's sewer installation site in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. The company withdrew its appeal on June 11, 2012 and agreed settle the case with the EEOC and plaintiff intervener for $1 million and court costs. In July 2017, Bass Pro Outdoor World LLC agreed, without admitting wrongdoing, to pay $10.5 million to a class of African-American and Hispanic workers the EEOC alleged it discriminated against by failing to hire because of their race and/or national origin in violation of Title VII. The record showed that complainant had a close working relationship with White managers, which the selecting official held against her because of her race. Find your nearest EEOC office
No. Invest., No. Following a hearing, the AJ found that the Agency failed to articulate a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for Complainant's non-selection. Such alleged conduct violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, which prohibits discriminating against individuals because they are age 40 or older. The plaintiff was able to file a lawsuit against this company with the help of the EEOC and was given a . The company also agreed to establish an internal complaint procedure, disseminate an anti-harassment policy, and train its workforce to prevent future harassment. The agreement resolves a lawsuit filed by the EEOC in September 2011. OFO ordered the Agency to promote Complainant and pay back pay with interest and benefits, investigate and determine her entitlement to compensatory damages, and consider disciplining and provide EEO training to the responsible management officials. 'More aggressive' EEOC likely to sue more employers in 2022 Justice Department and EEOC Warn Against Disability Discrimination The lawsuit further charged that the company suspended and then fired all three employees for complaining about the harassment. In December 2014, three related well-servicing companies agreed to pay $1.2 million to settle allegations by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission of verbal abuse of minority employees. EEOC v. Rugo Stone, LLC, Civil Action No. In its complaint, the EEOC alleged that the managers of the company not only knew about the harassment and took no action to stop or prevent it, but also that a manager was one of the perpetrators of the harassment. The complaint alleged that since at least January, 2012, Diversified engaged in an ongoing pattern or practice of race discrimination against African-American job applicants in Maryland, Washington D.C., and Philadelphia metropolitan areas by refusing to hire Black applicants for custodian, lead custodian or porter positions and racially harassing a Black janitorial supervisor in the presence of customers and employees. Gender-based discrimination claims were the most frequent basis for the EEOC's amicus filings this year, as the agency placed 11 cases in this category. 21-1499. In June 2008, a beauty supply chain agreed to pay $30,000 to settle a race discrimination lawsuit in which the EEOC charged that it rescinded a job offer after learning the successful applicant was Black. The 2-year consent decree also requires the manufacturer to rehire the Black sales rep in its North Texas District at a higher salary with 3% commissions and relocation expenses up to $15,000. In addition, the EEOC asserted that Latino / brown-skinned workers were told not to speak Spanish during their break times. In the first lawsuit, the EEOC charged that Bay Country's owner repeatedly used racial slurs and fired a secretary in retaliation for her opposition to the racial harassment. 1:11-cv-915 (E.D. Because of this finding, the decision found it unnecessary to address the basis of retaliation. 0520170446 (Nov. 3, 2017). Pioneer failed to stop and rectify the harassment and discrimination despite repeated complaints by the Latino / brown-skinned workers. The EEOC found the Agency's explanation to be "so fraught with contradiction as not to be credible," and thus, a pretext for discrimination. 103, 103 (1972). Mar. In March 2012, a Fairfax County, Va.-based stone contracting company agreed to pay $40,000 and furnish other significant relief to settle an EEOC lawsuit alleging national origin, religion and color discrimination. In February 2008, a restaurant agreed to pay $165,000 to resolve a Title VII lawsuit EEOC brought on behalf of a dining manager who was Arab and Moroccan because he and an Arab waiter from Tunisia allegedly had been subjected to customer harassment based on race and national origin and then the manager was fired in retaliation for opposing the harassment. A class of African-American employees was subjected to racial harassment by co-workers when workers in a specific division were referred to as the "ghetto division," and were called derivations of "chocolate" or "chocolate delicious," conduct that went uncorrected. EEOC v. Day & Zimmerman NPS, Inc., No. The court also enjoined the company from discriminating on the basis of race or protected conduct in violation of Title VII. In September 2010, EEOC sued the largest private university in the United States and one of New York City's ten biggest employers for allegedly violating federal law by creating a hostile work environment for an African-born employee that included degrading verbal harassment based on national origin and race. The evidence of record established, however, that the "DAN" comment was unlikely used in complainant's presence as he could not recall who said it and he conceded it was not directed at him. The Commission found that the agency failed to provide a legitimate, non-discriminatory reason for the non-selection. 11-6426 & 11-6427 (6th Cir.) The EEOC alleged that DSW intentionally discriminated against a former assistant manager at the company's Warrensville Heights, Ohio retail store because she is Black when it terminated the assistant manager after she had been subjected to race-based discipline and unequal terms and conditions of employment. The AJ found that for approximately two and one-half years Black Health Technicians refused to comply with her orders while following the orders of African American nurses; that one Health Technician told complainant that she would not take orders from a White nurse; and that Technicians screamed, banged on doors, blocked complainant's exit when complainant asked for assistance. The complaint also alleged that the two Charging Parties were retaliated against when they were suspended for minor issues within a few months of complaining about racial conditions at the plant. The harassing behavior continued despite numerous complaints by all three employees. The EEOC alleged the retaliation was so severe that one of the entertainers was forced to leave her employment. Skanska awarded a subcontract to C-1 to provide buck hoist operations for the construction site and thereafter supervised all C-1 employees while at the work site. In a unanimous published opinion, a three-judge panel said it found no issue with a trial court granting summary judgment to the town of Sneads in John McAlpin's suit claiming retaliation in violation of the Family and Medical Leave Act, the First Amendment and Florida's whistleblower law. The Commission's evidence included inculpatory tester evidence and expert testimony indicating that the names and voices of the Black applicants, as well as some of the organizational affiliations (e.g. When the Rastafarians complained, a white security supervisor made light of the physical threat and implied the Rastafarians were at fault. The company will also provide employee training designed to prevent future discrimination and harassment on the job. In July 2010, Plaintiff Brenda Chaney and the EEOC as amicus curiae obtained a reversal of a summary judgment in favor of an employer in a Title VII case that "pit[ted] a [Black] health-care worker's right to a non-discriminatory workplace against a patient's demand for [W]hite-only health-care providers." The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded the district court's decision granting summary judgment to the defendant on the White plaintiffs' Title VII claims alleging that they were subjected to a racially hostile work environment based on their association with their Black coworkers. Pursuant to a consent decree, the chain also agreed to hiring goals with the aim of having 11 percent of its future workforce be African American. Equal . Mar. The EEOC alleged in a December 2017 complaint that the rent-to-own furniture chain subjected Black employees at a Queens, N.Y., warehouse to racist name-calling by two managers. EEOC v. River View Coal, LLC, No. In April 2011, an architectural sheet metal company settled a racial harassment case for $160,000 in which the EEOC alleged that a White supervisor regularly referred to African-American employees with the epithet "n----r" and used other slurs and racial graffiti was on display in common areas and on company equipment. EEOC v. Caldwell Freight Lines, Case No. EEOC v. Matrix L.L.C., Civil Action No. EEOC settled 19 lawsuits, including the largest settlement of $20,500,000 obtained by the Phoenix District and Denver field offices. EEOC v. M. Slavin & Sons Ltd., No. EEOC v. Alliant Techsystems Inc., Case No. Five Times the EEOC Joined Court Battles to Help Workers in 2022 In December 2009, EEOC won the $1 million judgment in a race and sex discrimination suit following a four-day trial. 2:10-CV-955 (D. Utah consent decree filed Apr. The jury found that the retailer failed to accommodate Marlo Spaeth, a longtime employee with Down syndrome, and then fired her in July 2015 because of her disability. In November 2004, the Commission decided that, although racially charged comments were only made on one day, the nature of the comments, which included several racial slurs, was sufficiently severe to render work environment hostile. Tenn. Sep. 7, 2016). In April 2006, the Commission resolved a race discrimination lawsuit challenging the termination of a White female employee who worked without incident for a hotel and conference center until management saw her biracial children. The employee ultimately was fired after he complained to the company's safety manager about the harassment. They alleged a soon-to-be salon manager told them that she did not want African-Americans working in the salon. EEOC v. J&R Baker Farms LLC, No. The hostile conduct ranged from "cold shoulder" type behavior to the use of the term "nigger lover," references to the KKK, and direct threats on their lives, as well as being told to "stay with their own kind." 0:11-cv-02785-DSD-JJG (D. Minn. consent decree filed Nov. 20, 2012). Of those 88 employees, 70 were Black. 1-800-669-6820 (TTY)
Individuals who believe they may have been victims of discrimination may file a complaint at https://civilrights.justice.gov/. The AJ questioned the Director's credibility, finding that there were considerable gaps in the Director's statements. The district court dismissed the EEOC's case, ruling that Xerxes had "acted quickly and reasonably effectively to end" the harassment. In November 2010, a company which transports saltwater from oil wells and has facilities in Quitman, Arizona settled for $75,000 the EEOC's lawsuit alleging that it subjected a Black truck driver and another Black employee at its Quitman location to racial harassment, which included racial jokes and racially derogatory language (e.g., "nigger"); gave them fewer work assignments than White employees because of their race; and further reduced the driver's work assignments because of his complaints about racial discrimination and suspended and discharged him because of his race and his complaints about racial discrimination. Tex. The consent decree enjoins the company from engaging in any racial discrimination or retaliation and requires the company to post a remedial notice for two years. According to the suit, supervisors and employees subjected an African American truck washer, the only black employee at the Milton facility for most of his employment, to racial epithets and insults despite the truck washer's complaints to management and then the company fired him on the same day that he complained. Lee felt he had to resign because of the harassment, and the EEOC further alleged that, since 2011, Arizona Discount Movers has required its employees sign a two-page "Rules and Employee Agreement," which included both "Negative attitudes, fighting, complainers will not be tolerated here" and "Drugs, fighting, foul language, racism, arguing will be tolerated." 10-955 (D. Utah Oct. 10, 2012). After six years as a line service technician, defendant promoted Charging Party to supervisor. The EEOC asserted that the military contractor engaged in racial harassment and retaliation after it allegedly permitted a Latino supervisor and White co-workers to subject an African American electrician to racial jokes, slurs and threats daily for a year. EEOC alleged that Hughes complained to management many times for more than a year regarding the harassment, and that when Day & Zimmerman finally arranged a meeting in response, it disciplined Hughes less than an hour later, and then fired him that same day, citing a false safety violation as a reason. Lawyers can be helpful when brokering a higher settlement. EEOC v. Pioneer Hotel, Inc. d/b/a Pioneer Hotel and Gambling Hall, Case No. Following a hearing, the AJ found that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (Agency) discriminated against Complainant on the bases of race and age when it did not select him for a. Target also violated Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act by failing to maintain the records sufficient to gauge the impact of its hiring procedures. In November 2019, Janitorial Service Provider Diversified Maintenance Systems, LLC paid $750,000 and furnished significant equitable relief to settle a federal race discrimination, harassment and retaliation lawsuit. The manager allegedly made continually disparaging comments to the former attorney, saying that she needed to assimilate more into the local culture and break up with her boyfriend at the time, also White, in favor of a local boy. 2:14-cv-02740 (W.D. Jan. 8, 2015). In August 2015, the district court denied a motion to dismiss by J&R Baker Farms LLC and J&R Baker Farms Partnership in a lawsuit brought by the EEOC. In March 2014, a federal district court upheld a jury verdict in favor of the EEOC and ruled that Sparx Restaurant of Menomonie, Wis., must provide back pay with interest of more than $41,000 in addition to the jury's award of damages of $15,000 to a former employee who was fired in retaliation for complaining about a racist display in the workplace. In June 2008, a San Jose-based manufacturer of semiconductor production equipment agreed to pay $168,000 to settle EEOC claims that it failed to stop the racial harassment of an African American assembly technician who was forced to listen to a Vietnamese coworker play and rap aloud to rap music with racially offensive lyrics and then fired the Black employee after he repeatedly complained about his work conditions. In May 2009, a masonry company agreed to pay $500,000 to settle a Title VII lawsuit alleging race and national origin harassment of Hispanic employees. Thus, the Commission found that the prima facie case and complainant's qualifications, combined with the agency's failure to provide a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for complainant's non-selection, warranted a finding of race discrimination. In this case, the EEOC alleged that a White consultant visited the car dealership three to four times a week and never missed an opportunity to make racially derogatory comments towards the Black sales manager and almost always in the presence of other people. Inc., Civil Action No. Although they deny the allegations, the companies also agreed to provide the affected workers with neutral employment references; maintain social media and information policies that prohibit the use of email, software, or hardware or any company-owned devices to be used for racially offensive communications or similar misconduct; and maintain procedures that encourage workers to come forward with race bias complaints. On appeal, the Commission concluded that the AJ's finding was supported by substantial evidence, and agreed with the AJ that the Agency's legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for not selecting Complainant was a pretext for race and age discrimination. EEOC v. Izza Bending Tube & Wire, Inc., No. According to the consent decree, Bass Pro will engage in good faith efforts to increase diversity by reaching out to minority colleges and technical schools, participating in job fairs in communities with large minority populations and post job openings in publications popular among Black and Hispanic communities. In August 2014, a Thomasville mattress company agreed to pay a combined $42,000 to two Black former workers to settle an EEOC complaint that alleged they were unlawfully fired. The EEOC decided there was a pattern of racial discrimination at the company, and ordered Texaco to settle for $115million in cash for about 1500 minority employees. According to the EEOC, an African-American foreman repeatedly had racial slurs directed at him by a White superintendent and other White foremen. In September 2008, the company locked out, suspended, and ultimately fired Somali Muslim employees in Greeley who had walked outside the plant to break their Ramadan fasts, EEOC alleged. 2:09-cv-00923 (M.D. 1:17-cv-00070 (E.D . In September 2012, the County of Kauai in Hawaii paid $120,000 to settle a federal charge of race harassment filed with the EEOC. The managers of the club used racial slurs when speaking of and to the doormen, forced them to work in the back of the club instead of at the entrance, and complained that "black music makes the club look bad." Tex. In October 2008, a department store chain in Iowa entered a consent decree agreeing to pay $50,000 and to provide other affirmative relief. A posting notice and attorneys fees were also ordered. 7:11-CV-00134-HL (N.D. Ga. settlement announced Dec. 13, 2012). The Commission lawsuit charged that Izza's manager instructed Peltonen not to hire the Black employee, who was working as a temporary employee, to a permanent position, and told her to get rid of him because of his race. Studies of verdicts have shown that about 10% of wrongful termination cases result in a verdict of $1 million or more. Told that they needed to learn Spanish because they were in South Texas, the employees said that instead of addressing their complaints of discrimination, they were fired. The plant where the discrimination occurred had closed during the litigation period. They also referred to Black children or mixed-race children as 'porch monkeys' or 'Oreo babies.' The law on disability discrimination is clear and unequivocalit is illegal to discriminate against anyone at work due to their disability. Though the company hired 52 of its predecessor's former employees, none of them were Black. The 24-month consent decree applies to all of Defendant's facilities in Georgia and include requirements that Defendant create and institute a nonretaliation policy, advise all employees that it will not retaliate against them for complaining about discrimination, and instruct all management and supervisory personnel about the terms of the decree and provide them with annual training on Title VII's equal employment obligations, including nonretaliation. EEOC v. Northern Star Hospitality, Inc., No. The three-year decree enjoins the company from future discrimination and retaliation on the basis of race or national origin and mandates anti-discrimination and investigation training for all of its employees and supervisors. EEOC v. MBM Corp., No. Hurley also agreed to pay about $200,000 in March to settle a lawsuit filed by three nurses. Brooks was also subjected to harassment such as racial slurs and racially derogatory insults, taunting and racial stereotypes, including the use of the "N-word." In June 2016, DHD Ventures Management Company Inc. will pay a total of $40,000 to settle allegations of racial harassment and retaliation. The second Black employee testified that, when he was hired in 2005, he was the company's only African American and was told he was the "token black." EEOC v. AutoZone, Inc., No. The EEOC's lawsuit charged that JL Schwieters Construction, Inc. violated federal law when it subjected two Black employees to a hostile work environment, including physical threats, based on their race. EEOC alleged that, instead of promoting one older Black employee, the company promoted a 28-year old Caucasian employee with seven months of experience and who did not meet the stated criteria for the position. Case Number. Frequently Asked Questions, Commissioner Charges and Directed Investigations, Office of Civil Rights, Diversity and Inclusion, Management Directives & Federal Sector Guidance, Federal Sector Alternative Dispute Resolution, Compliance Manual Section on Race and Color Discrimination, Significant EEOC Race/Color Cases(Covering Private and Federal Sectors), http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/civilrights/activities/agreements/hurley.html, https://www.clearinghouse.net/detail.php?id=8939. In November 2002, the Commission settled a lawsuit with the Las Vegas hotel for more than $1 million on behalf of African American and Hispanic applicants who were allegedly were not hired for server positions because of their race.