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EEOC v. NYU, No. EEOC v. King-Lar Co., No. The four-year consent decree also includes provisions requiring anti-discrimination training, reporting, and postings. filed Sep. 29, 2012). In March 2004, the EEOC settled a hostile work environment case in which a Caucasian-looking employee, who had a White mother and Black father, was repeatedly subjected to racially offensive comments about Black people after a White coworker learned she was biracial. In April 2012, the Fifth Circuit ruled that Kansas City Southern Railway Company (KCSR) violated Title VII when engaged in race discrimination by terminating two Black employees because of work rule violations and retaining their similarly-situated White co-drivers who were involved in the same incidents leading to Black employees' dismissals. 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. In addition to the monetary relief, the hotel must offer three of those employees their next available housekeeping positions and train any employees involved in the hiring process. The consent decree also requires Hillshire to implement anti-racism training and create a mechanism for employees at its existing plants to confidentially report instances of harassment, discrimination and retaliation. He is retired, but not by choice. Additionally, EEOC alleged that an assistant store manager threatened to lynch him. The court said the undisputed evidence also indicated that human resources manager told the company's employees during a safety meeting not to "nigger rig their jobs"; that company management was aware the worksite's portable toilets were covered with racist graffiti; and that other White supervisors and employees routinely used racial epithets, including an incident where a White supervisor commented regarding rap music being played in a van transporting employees to the worksite, "I'm not listening to this nigger jig." The settlement requires Baker Farms to stop discriminatory practices on the basis of national origin or race, refrain from automatically filling jobs with H-2A workers, or foreign nationals who receive a visa to fill temporary agricultural jobs, without first considering American workers and institute a formal anti-discrimination policy by Aug. 1, in addition to the monetary relief. EEOC v. JL Schwieters Construction, Inc., Civil Action No. In August 2011, a federal district court entered a default judgment in favor of the EEOC in its lawsuit alleging that a pipeline construction company permitted several African American employees to be subjected to hanging nooses in the workplace even after they complained about the offensive displays. The lawsuit alleged that a Swissport manager routinely called the African fuelers "monkeys" in various degrading ways. The lawsuit seeks back pay, compensatory and punitive damages, instatement or reinstatement as well as an injunction against future discrimination and retaliation. In December 2012, an office and technology supply store paid $85,000 and target recruitment of African-Americans and Hispanics to settle a retaliation lawsuit filed by the EEOC. In November 2017, the EEOC reversed the Department of Homeland Security's (Agency) finding of no race discrimination on the Complainant's allegation that the Agency discriminated against him based on race when it issued him Letters of Counseling for unprofessional conduct and missing a duty call. In April 2008, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the district court's decision granting summary judgment to the defendant on the plaintiff's Title VII claim alleging that he was subjected to a racially hostile work environment. The 2-year consent decree also enjoins the firm from making hiring decisions based on race and prohibits retaliation. In August 2017, Ford Motor Company agreed to pay nearly $10.125 million to settle sex and race harassment investigation by the EEOC at two Ford plants in Chicago area. In September 2007, EEOC upheld an Administrative Judge's (AJ) default judgment in favor of complainant, a Staff Nurse Supervisor, who had alleged race discrimination when she was not selected for a Nurse Manager position. 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. In December 2012, Hamilton Growers, Inc., doing business as Southern Valley Fruit and Vegetable, Inc., an agricultural farm in Norman Park, Ga., agreed to pay $500,000 to a class of American seasonal workers - many of them African-American - who, the EEOC alleged, were subjected to discrimination based on their national origin and/or race, the agency announced today. 2:14-cv-02740 (W.D. McAlpin, who was the police chief in Sneads from 2006 to 2018, argued that he was terminated by the Town . 09-30558 (5th Cir. EEOC v. Pioneer Hotel, Inc. d/b/a Pioneer Hotel and Gambling Hall, Case No. In June 2007, the company hired a White male for the IT job. Meanwhile, in the same timeframe, management approved such training for two similarly situated White officers who were eventually promoted to SOL. The EEOC further charged that the company maintained a segregated work force and an established practice of not hiring males for cashier positions at the same locations. Between June and September 2006, three employees resigned from the salon manager position and in filling the salon manager position all three times, the salon selected a succession of three White employees from other salons whose ages ranged from late teens to early 20s even though the Black stylist was more than qualified to fill the position. We are looking for people who may have been affected by the unlawful discrimination alleged in these suits. Instead, the company discharged the white driver later for an unrelated matter. According to evidence in the record, management denied the SOS the opportunity to the attend trainings necessary for promotion into a Security Officer Locksmith (SOL), citing budgetary reasons. Under the terms of the consent decree, if the company resumes operations, it will have to implement an anti-discrimination policy and report to the EEOC all discrimination complaints and information regarding its hiring practices during the term of the decree. Konos Agrees to Pay $175,000 to Settle EEOC Sexual Harassment and Retaliation Case. The agency alleges these actions were motivated by race. The substantial jury verdict in this case sends a strong message to employers that disability discrimination is unacceptable in our nations workplaces, said EEOC Chair Charlotte A. Burrows. Find your nearest EEOC office According to EEOC data, the average out-of-court settlement for employment discrimination claims is about $40,000. Several individuals complained to management, but their complaints were minimized or ignored, the complaint alleged. The agency found no discrimination and complainant appealed. According to one discrimination victim: "My supervisors often referred to my fellow African-American employees and me as 'n-----rs' and 'porch monkeys' and forced us to play so-called 'Civil War games' where employees were divided into North and South. The Commission noted that, while complainant was asked to provide additional information concerning child care and told that she would have to submit to a home inspection, a White male employee who also had children at home was not asked to do so. In March 2015, a Texas-based oil and gas drilling company agreed to settle for $12.26 million the EEOC's lawsuit alleging discrimination, harassment and retaliation against racial minorities nationwide. The company must also report certain complaints of harassment or retaliation to the EEOC for monitoring. 2:11-cv-06183 (E.D. According to EEOC's complaint, the company gave raises and paid higher salaries to all maintenance department employees except the department's lone African-American employee because of racial animus and allowed a supervisor to regularly use racially offensive language toward the Black employee, causing the employee to quit his job to escape the abuse. Three assessments used by Target disproportionately screened out female and racial minority applicants, and a separate psychological assessment was a pre-employment medical examination that violated the Americans with Disabilities Act, the EEOC had charged. In August 2006, a Pennsylvania health care company agreed to pay $16,000 to two older workers who allegedly were denied promotions based on their race (Black) and their ages (50 and 53), despite their extensive relevant experience of 13+ years. The settlement follows conciliation of an EEOC charge under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act over claims that an African-American job candidate was denied a truck driver position at a J.B. Hunt facility in San Bernardino, Calif., in 2009 based on a criminal conviction record, which the EEOC contends was unrelated to the duties of the job. In addition to management subjecting the Black supervisor to heightened and unfair scrutiny, the company moved his office to the basement, while White employees holding the same position were moved to higher floors. 1:11-cv-09682 (S.D.N.Y. According to the Commission's lawsuit, the staffing company unlawfully discriminated against a senior functional analyst, who was the oldest employee and only Caucasian in the department, because of her race and age in violation of Title VII and the ADEA when a young, African American supervisor subjected her to different treatment and terminated her when she complained. EEOC v. Rugo Stone, LLC, Civil Action No. EEOC v. Columbine Health Sys. The U.S. Annually, defendants must provide copies of the decree to all supervisors and managers, and obtain signed statements that they have read the decree and agree to be bound by its terms. The harassment in this case, in which the EEOC filed an amicus brief in support of the victims, centered on the frequent use of the term "boy" to refer to the Black male employees. "In the Matter of U.S. In July 2006, EEOC reached a $100,000 settlement in its Title VII lawsuit against a Springfield, Missouri grocery chain alleging that a Black assistant manager was subjected to racially derogatory comments and epithets and was permanently suspended in retaliation for complaining about his store manager's racial harassment of him and the manager's sexual harassment of another worker. During her work tenure, Washenko made several derogatory comments about Morrocans, Muslims and Middle Easterns, often referring to them as "terrorists" and "crooks." In February 2009, the Sixth Circuit published a favorable decision in a Title VII associational discrimination case in which the EEOC participated as amicus curiae. The consent decree also requires the pizzeria to keep records on information relevant to whether unlawful practices have been committed and its hiring data, and to submit reports to the EEOC on this information. 13-cv-00198 (D. Wyo. Apr. Corey Bussey, Justin Jones and Christopher Evans worked in the meat department at GNT Foods. 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. In December 2018, Maritime Autowash (later known as Phase 2 Investments, Inc.) paid $300,000 in monetary relief and furnished equitable relief to settle an EEOC race and national origin discrimination lawsuit. Significant Disability Discrimination Litigation Filed or Resolved: July 2013-July 24, 2014. It also will conduct supervisor and employee training on discrimination and retaliation laws and establish a confidential process for people to submit discrimination and retaliation complaints. 1:10-CV-02692 (D. Md. The non-White physicians represented different races and national origins, including Asian, Native American, Nigerian, Puerto Rican, and Pakistani. The decision noted that the Agency took six months to engage in an internal investigation and issue the coworker a proposed 30-day suspension. The Commission found that the agency's reasons were not sufficiently clear so that complainant could be given a fair opportunity to rebut such reasons. In June 2010, a Warren, Mich., automotive supplier paid $190,000 to settle a race discrimination and retaliation lawsuit in which the EEOC alleged that the supplier repeatedly overlooked qualified non-White employees, including a group of Black employees and a Bangladeshi employee, for promotions to the maintenance department. In July 2008, a Florida laundry services company agreed to pay $80,000 and furnish other remedial relief to settle an EEOC discrimination lawsuit. The EEOC had charged that the company unlawfully retaliated against an employee for objecting to race discrimination. I am familiar with EEOC cases and have fought and won . information only on official, secure websites. In June 2010, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and a Kansas-based national employment staffing firm settled for $125,000 a case on behalf of a White, 55-year-old former employee who allegedly was treated less favorably than younger Black colleagues and fired when she complained. His direct supervisor commented that his father used to run "your kind" out of town. 1-800-669-6820 (TTY) In addition to the monetary settlement, the company agreed to hire an external monitor and implement hiring goals and measures to ensure hiring transparency and diversification. 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." Memphis Health Center, Inc.: Case Nos. The racial hostility manifested as racist graffiti, racial epithets, and the hanging of a noose at a Salt Lake City rail yard. The 5-year consent decree provides $150,000 in compensatory damages to be distributed to claimants (defined as all caregivers employed by defendant from October 2007 through entry of the decree) in amounts determined by EEOC based on length of service and employment status. In addition to paying $40,000 in monetary relief, the company must abide by the terms of a two-year consent decree resolving the case. In the lawsuit, the EEOC asked for Spaeth to be reinstated, as well as back pay, compensatory damages and punitive . In June 2017, the EEOC reversed the Administrative Judge's finding of no discrimination by summary judgment, which the Department of Homeland Security (Agency) adopted, regarding Complainant's claim that the Agency discriminated against her, an African American woman, when it failed to select her for a promotion. The agency also alleged that Hamilton Growers fired at least 16 African-American workers in 2009 based on race and/or national origin as their termination was coupled with race-based comments by a management official; . In addition to the monetary relief, the two-year consent decree requires Windings to use hiring procedures to provide equal employment opportunity to all applicants including posting vacancy announcements and job listings on its website, and not solely rely on word-of-mouth recruitment or employee referrals. Ala. Feb. 27, 2014). Further, the AJ was entitled to draw a reasonable inference from the fact that the Selecting Official did not contact Complainant's supervisor despite having contacted the Selectee's most recent supervisor. Marshal because of race, gender, and age discrimination when the agency's Career Board selected a 34-year old Caucasian female based on her academy achievement, work experience and interview. Additionally, he complained about plaintiff's request for a three-month maternity leave and refused to transfer back her job duties when she returned to work. In November 2015, the judge awarded $50,515 in fees and $6,733.76 in costs to the EEOC because the "Defendants willfully violated the explicit terms of the Consent Decree and repeatedly failed to comply with it [.]" In February 2008, the Commission upheld an AJ's finding of race and color discrimination where a probationary employee was terminated from his position of Part-Time Flexible Letter Carrier. Complainant filed an EEO complaint alleging that the U.S. Department of Transportation discriminated against her on the bases of race (African-American) and color (Black), when on November 11, 2016, she was subjected to harassment by a coworker. The amended policies must state that prohibited racial discrimination in "all other employment decisions" includes, but is not limited to, making decisions and providing terms and conditions of employment such as pay, assignments, working conditions, and job duties; also, it must prohibit retaliation. In September 2012, a Rosemont, Ill.-based food product distributor paid $165,000 and furnished other relief to settle a race discrimination lawsuit filed by the EEOC. The Commission found that the agency failed to provide a legitimate, non-discriminatory reason for the non-selection. In November 2007, a high-end suburban Illinois retirement facility agreed to pay $125,000 to settle a discrimination lawsuit alleging that it terminated its director of nursing, because of her national origin (Filipino) and race (Asian). The managers told him that he should have thought of this [that he might need future assistance from them] before he filed his [previous] EEO complaint. [2] As the Sixth Circuit explained: "A White employee who is discharged because his child is biracial is discriminated against on the basis of his race, even though the root animus for the discrimination is a prejudice against the biracial child" because "the essence of the alleged discrimination . The chain was charged with refusing to hire African-American applicants and having managers who used racial slurs to refer to African-Americans. Housekeeping and security department staffers in particular were constantly the targets of slurs by several supervisors and co-workers. According to the EEOC lawsuit, a management trainee who was the only African-American employee at the store was subjected to a litany of unremedied racial comments including being called "spook," "boy," and "King Kong" and told that he had the "face of a janitor" from store management. In November 2004, the Commission settled for $50 million a lawsuit filed against Abercrombie & Fitch on behalf of a class of African Americans, Asian Americans, Latinos, and women allegedly subjected to discrimination in recruitment, hiring, assignment, promotion and discharge based on race, color, national origin, and sex. The average wrongful termination settlement in North Carolina is between $5,000 - $90,000. According to the EEOC, a parts department manager, who is White, allegedly used the "N-word" to refer to at least two Black employees and made racially derogatory comments and jokes on a near daily basis at the dealership. EEOC v. Battaglia Distrib. Racial discrimination at work is the most common reason for a complaint to the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC), accounting for nearly 33% of all charges filed in 2020. Pipeline Constr. The Commission claimed that the agency selected Hispanics regardless of prior experience, place in line or availability. On appeal, the Seventh Circuit affirmed the district court's judgment and held for the first time held that a tax-offset award was appropriate in a Title VII claim when the lump-sum award place the employee in a higher tax bracket. 0:11-cv-02785-DSD-JJG (D. Minn. consent decree filed Nov. 20, 2012). There are few ways to determine if these items could have been awarded based on merit or favoritism. Sep. 21, 2010). In February 2020, a Texas-based fiberglass conduit and strut manufacturer implemented extensive hiring reforms and paid $225,000 to settle allegations by the EEOC that it refused to hire non-Hispanic individuals as laborers. According to an EEOC lawsuit filed in September 2011 in a federal court in Pennsylvania, the executives of the cleaning company prohibited a White supervisor from hiring Black employees for a client in Concordsville, PA. As part of the decree, the provider also agreed to extensive changes in its employment policies, to engage in "active recruitment" of African American employees, to hire previously rejected Black applicants, to implement training on discrimination and retaliation, and to hire an outside monitor to review compliance with the decree. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and Seasons 52 restaurant chain indicates that the more familiar pattern-or-practice of age discrimination . The company also will implement and disseminate to all employees a revised anti-harassment policy, and will also post a notice regarding the settlement. In addition, a White employee who opposed this type of race discrimination and complained that managers in the maintenance department were using racial slurs allegedly was fired shortly after the company learned of his complaints. In December 2016, Crothall Services Group, Inc., a nationwide provider of janitorial and facilities management services, settled an EEOC lawsuit by adopting significant changes to its record-keeping practices related to the use of criminal background checks. EEOC v. McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants, Inc. and McCormick and Schmick Restaurant Corporation, No. 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. The district court dismissed the EEOC's case, ruling that Xerxes had "acted quickly and reasonably effectively to end" the harassment. The court denied the request. This is definitely one reason organizations like to reach settlement out of court. 9, 2012). EEOC v. Ganley Lincoln of Bedford Inc., No. In June 2006, a Newark port facility paid $28,500 to settle a race and age discrimination lawsuit brought by EEOC, which alleged that the facility's new manager mistreated and then fired a 56-year-old African American customer service representative, who was the only Black and oldest of seven employees, because of her race and age. In September 2019, a tire, wheels and auto service company, agreed to pay $55,000 and furnish other relief to settle a racial harassment and retaliation lawsuit filed by the EEOC. Such alleged conduct violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, which prohibits discriminating against individuals because they are age 40 or older. In January 2020, Falcon Foundry Company agreed to resolve a racial harassment class case which was filed against it by the Youngstown Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the EEOC. Miss. Notice of consent decree will be visibly posted at the hotel. The four-year agreement requires the company to furnish semi-annual compliance reports to the EEOC, including regarding the whereabouts of the two managers accused of the alleged harassment. 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. Under the two-year consent decree, U-Haul Company of Tennessee must maintain an anti-discrimination policy prohibiting race discrimination, racial harassment, and retaliation, and provide mandatory training to all employees regarding the policy. 92-261, 2(7), 86 Stat. 2:10-cv-02101(GMS) (D. Ariz. Nov. 25, 2014). The driver complained about the racial jokes and language to management but was suspended for 4 days following a dispute about a work assignment, and was discharged during the suspension. According to the EEOC's complaint, Crothall used criminal background checks to make hiring decisions without making and keeping required records that disclose the impact criminal history assessments have on persons identifiable by race, sex, or ethnic group, a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1965. The 2-year consent decree enjoins sex and race harassment and discrimination and retaliation in violation of Title VII and age discrimination under the ADEA. 11-cv-2558-REB-CBS (D. Colo. Oct. 2, 2012). 2015). The consent decree enjoins the restaurant from engaging in racial discrimination and requires the chain to post a remedial notice and amend and distribute its anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policies. The jury found that Danny's also forced the dancers to work at a related club, Black Diamonds, even though they were subject to arrest there because they were not licensed to work at that club. In September 2019, a San Jose, California food producer and distributor paid $2 million to settle an EEOC race discrimination lawsuit, charging that the company refused to hire non-Hispanic applicants of all races, including Black, White and Asian applicants, for unskilled production warehouse positions because its affiliates preferred Hispanic job applicants.