See also Resolution Agreement between the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights and Hurley Medical Center, 13-156114, (July 31, 2014 available at http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/civilrights/activities/agreements/hurley.html). EEOC also charged Scully gave non-White drivers less favorable job assignments than their White counterparts. In November 2019, On The Border Acquisitions, LLC, doing business as On The Border Mexican Grill & Cantina (OTB), paid $100,000 and provided other relief to settle an EEOC race harassment lawsuit. The non-White physicians represented different races and national origins, including Asian, Native American, Nigerian, Puerto Rican, and Pakistani. The consent decree enjoins the restaurant from discriminating based on race in hiring or promotion into the bartender position, requires the restaurant to adopt a written anti-discrimination policy, provide Title VII training to all managers and supervisors, keep records related to any future complaints alleging racial discrimination in hiring or promotion, and submit reports to the EEOC. 3:10-cv-00681 (S.D. The decree also mandates training of employees and reporting to the EEOC any future complaints of race harassment. 21-1499. Twenty-one employees filed an EEOC complaint about receiving less pay than their white colleagues, being passed over for promotions, being subjected to sexual harassment and referred to by slurs, including lazy and streetwalkers. In addition to the payout, the deal requires Jackson to take steps to prevent future race- and sex-based harassment, including designating an internal compliance monitor and hiring a consultant to review its policies. EEOC v. SFI of Tenn. LLC, No. The consent decree enjoins the video store from discriminating on the basis of race, color, or national origin and requires the store to post a remedial notice in the store in question and the EEO Poster in all locations across the country. According to the EEOC's lawsuit, Prewett and Desoto supervisors and managers subjected African American employees to daily harassment and humiliation because of their race by calling them racially offensive and derogatory names and assigned Black employees the more dangerous job duties. In January 2007, the Commission found discrimination based on race (African-American) when a federal employee was not selected for the position of Criminal Investigator despite plainly superior qualifications as compared to the selectee. In July 2011, a global manufacturer and seller of chemical products in El Dorado, Ark., will pay $80,000 and furnish other relief to settle an EEOC lawsuit alleging the company engaged in race discrimination when it terminated Black employees based upon discriminatory and subjective evaluations. Although based on a single incident, the noose was a sufficiently severe racial symbol with violent implications that equates to a death threat. 09-30558 (5th Cir. Cal. Furthermore, the foreman, who wore a swastika on his arm, stated that he had "cut an African from the belly to the neck" and that he "likes killing blacks and Mexicans." 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 EEOC also found that Black and Hispanic employees were disciplined for violating company policies while Caucasian employees who violated the same policies were not disciplined. But it concluded that a jury would not find the lateral transfer had adversely affected Stuckey's employment since he suffered no reduction in pay, benefits, or responsibilities and it did not "alter his conditions of employment in a detrimental way." According to the EEOC's lawsuit, MPW subjected two African-American employees to racial harassment, including hangman's nooses, racial epithets, racist comments and jokes, and an alleged KKK meeting at the worksite. EEOC v. J&R Baker Farms LLC, No. Blacks were termed "n-----s" and Hispanics termed "s---s;" offensive graffiti in the men's restroom, which included racial and ethnic slurs, depictions of lynchings, swastikas, and White supremacist and anti-immigrant statements, was so offensive that several employees would relieve themselves outside the building or go home at lunchtime rather than use the restroom. In July 2007, EEOC sued a steakhouse restaurant chain for permitting its customers to harass a White employee because of her association with persons of a different race. In March 2008, a national restaurant chain entered a consent decree agreeing to pay $30,000 to resolve an EEOC case charging that the company gave African-American food servers inferior and lesser-paying job assignments by denying them assignments of larger parties with greater resulting tips and income, by denying them better paying assignments to banquets at the restaurant, and by failing on some occasions to give them assignments to any customers. 1-800-669-6820 (TTY) The EEOC charged that Hospman's former chief executive officer ordered the housekeeping supervisor to terminate all of the housekeepers - all but one of whom were Black - because he did not work with "those kind of people." Sears allegedly retaliated against Johnson for her initial EEOC discrimination charge in September 2007 by subjecting her to worsening terms and conditions at work. The lawsuit also alleged that the estimator was told that his religion (Islam), was "f---ing backwards," and "f---ing crazy," and was asked why Muslims are such "monkeys." The 2-year consent decree prohibits the company from engaging in sex and race discrimination and retaliation at the three stores. In each incident, the assistant manager made references to African-Americans using the N-word. The chain was charged with refusing to hire African-American applicants and having managers who used racial slurs to refer to African-Americans. In November 2006, the EEOC resolved a Title VII lawsuit alleging that defendant, a nationwide meat processing company, discriminated against Black maintenance department employees at its chicken processing plant in Ashland, Alabama, by subjecting them to a racially hostile work environment, which included a "Whites Only" sign on a bathroom in the maintenance department and a padlock on the bathroom door to which only White employees were given keys. EEOC v. Pioneer Hotel, Inc. d/b/a Pioneer Hotel and Gambling Hall, Case No. At work. The consent decree also requires four hours of Title VII training for all Video Only employees. Instead, the staffing agency granted placement preferences to Hispanic workers and also retaliated against an African American employee who complained of the discrimination by refusing to place her and denying her a promotion. EEOC v. JL Schwieters Construction, Inc., Civil Action No. In September 2019, a commercial truck washing facility paid $40,000 to settle an EEOC lawsuit accusing the owner of firing an employee because he is Black and had reported that he had been subjected to a racially hostile work environment. In September 2010, the EEOC commenced a lawsuit against a giant shipping and delivery service for subjecting a class of African-American employees to different job assignments because of their race. 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. Additionally, Diversified must implement a targeted hiring plan that tracks the number and race of applicants, and reason(s) why they are not hired. The four-year consent decree also includes provisions requiring anti-discrimination training, reporting, and postings. $186,295 disability discrimination settlement for an applicant being denied employment for being blind. 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 restaurant also allegedly failed to display information regarding federal anti-discrimination laws. These practices led to all American workers receiving less pay than their foreign born counterparts. Other Holmes employees used the term "n----r-rigging" while working there, and racist graffiti was evident both inside and outside portable toilets on the work site. The agreement follows conciliation between the EEOC and Reliable Nissan over claims that two Reliable Nissan Managers repeatedly used the "N-word" during a sales meeting, and referred to African, African-American, Native American, Muslim and Hispanic employees in a derogatory manner. 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. In addition, the company must submit two written reports to the EEOC regarding any future retaliation complaints and all pertinent information related to potential complaints. According to the lawsuit, Lesine and Ware allegedly were subjected to unwelcome derogatory racial comments and slurs made by a White coworker, including the repeated use of the "n" word. 13-cv-00198 (D. Wyo. The remarks included calling the employee "cricket" and "dumb-dumb" and telling him that "blacks don't get Saturdays off." The company also agreed to provide annual training for two years for its employees, including managers and human resources employees. 7, 2015). In addition to monetary relief, a consent decree enjoins the company from engaging in either sexual or racial harassment or retaliation. In November 2014, Battaglia Distributing Corporation paid $735,000 to a group of current and former African-American employees. The agency was ordered to provide complainant with backpay for the period she was out of work due to the failure to accommodate, and complainant was awarded $2,250 in compensatory damages. EEOC v. OfficeMax North America, Case No. In September 2010, EEOC filed a racial harassment lawsuit against a cell phone installation and testing company, asserting that the company violated federal anti-discrimination laws when it subjected an African-American employee to severe and repeated harassment. 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. . 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. In May 2005, the EEOC obtained a $500,000 settlement against a nursing facility in Puyallup, Washington for alleged violations of Title VII, which included the all-White care management team preparing a care plan incorporating a White family's request that no "colored girls" work with the resident; tolerating frequent use of racial slurs, including reference to a Black nurse as a "slave;" assigning Black nurses to the night shift, while giving White nurses the more desirable day shifts; assigning Black and White employees to separate lunchtimes and lunchrooms; and twice-denying a Black nurse a promotion a staffing position for which she had several years of experience and was highly qualified. In addition to prohibiting race discrimination and retaliation against Black employees at YRC's Chicago Heights facility, the decree also requires YRC to provide all Chicago Heights employees annual training on racial harassment and race discrimination and engage a Work Assignment Consultant and a Disciplinary Practice Consultant to assist it in reviewing and revising the company's work assignment and disciplinary policies and practices at the Chicago facility. In November 2019, a federal judge approved the settlement of the 2013 EEOC lawsuit challenging the way a discount retailer conducted criminal background checks of job applicants because the process allegedly discriminated against Black workers with criminal histories. The supervisor was the father of the company's president and he insisted that the "n-word" is Latin for "Black person." The parties reached an agreement and filed a joint motion to enter a consent decree. Employees of these racial groups on company rigs regularly heard racist terms and demeaning remarks about green cards and deportation, the EEOC complaint said. In March 2020, Prewett Enterprises, Inc., doing business as B&P Enterprises, and Desoto Marine, LLC, rail services and disaster response companies, paid $250,000 and furnished other relief to settle a race harassment case brought by the EEOC. Hostile Work Environment & Discrimination Settlements Additionally, Reliable Nissan agreed to review its policies and procedures to ensure that employees have a mechanism for reporting discrimination and to make certain that each complaint will be appropriately investigated. In its lawsuit, the EEOC had alleged that the employee's supervisors subjected him to racial epithets and asked if he was a "black man or a n----r." The Commission further alleged that, following his complaints of racial discrimination, the company demoted and later discharged the employee. The Black foreman complained to company management about the slurs to which he and other African-American employees were subjected, including epithets such as n-r, monkey and boy. The company not only failed to stop the harassment, but in fact promoted one of the wrongdoers and assigned the Black foreman to work under his supervision on a project. EEOC v. Crothall Servs. 11-cv-11296 (E.D. Ind. 9th Circ. Won't Revive Navy Worker's Disability Bias Suit In this case, the Commission alleged that the company engaged in a pattern-or-practice of race discrimination by relying on word-of-mouth hiring which resulted in a predominantly white workforce despite the substantial African-American available workforce in the Newark area. The Commission noted that several witnesses subscribed to Complainants view that management intentionally foreclosed minorities from career advancement. According to the EEOC's suit, Black employees were subjected to racial slurs and other racially offensive comments by their White supervisor, at U-Haul's Memphis facility. The restaurant agreed to pay $9.6 million to class members as part of a conciliation agreement. The decree also requires the company to establish and enforce a written policy that will ensure that employees are protected from discrimination. EEOC v. MWR Enterprises Inc., II, C.A. The restaurant must also keep records on the hiring of and promotion into the bartender position. 4:13-cv-92(SA)(JMV) (N.D. Miss. Marshal, with back pay and benefits, and pay complainant $50,000.00 and attorney's fees. In January 2007, EEOC settled a racial harassment lawsuit against AK Steel Corporation, a Fortune 500 company, for $600,000. These cases illustrate some of the common, novel, systemic and emerging issues in the realm of race and color discrimination. Cardwell, who is now 65, is pleased with the settlement, but he says he has faced many more experiences of age discrimination before and after the Ruby Tuesday interview. The supervisor also allegedly threatened Robinson, that he would "get back at" him for the "terrible things whites had done to blacks" in the past and allegedly berated him for being "too old" for the job and "washed up" in the industry. the court rejected that argument, concluding that the EEOC's "allegations of intentional discrimination are sufficient to state a claim for Title VII relief . When the teen complained to the company president about the offensive remarks, the supervisor's son replied that he could not reprimand his father. The 39-month consent decree requires defendant to consider all female and Black applicants on the same basis as all other applicants, to engage in good faith efforts to increase recruitment of female and Black applicants, and to submit semiannual reports to EEOC that include applicant flow and hiring data by race and sex. In September 2010, the owner of a strip club settled for $95,000 a race discrimination lawsuit, alleging that two African-American doormen were harassed, segregated and provided different terms and conditions of employment because of their race. The general manager also talked about a noose and having "friends" visit in the middle of the night as threats to Floyd. In addition to the monetary relief, the new consent decree requires the developer to conduct extensive training on investigating discrimination complaints, including methods for proper documentation and unbiased assessment of witness credibility. In July 2016, the Fourth Circuit reversed summary judgment in an employment discrimination case alleging race, national origin, religion, and pregnancy discrimination, hostile work environment, and retaliation in violation of Title VII and 42 U.S.C. Virginia (VA) wrongful termination settlements & cases 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. 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 court granted the EEOC's motion for a default judgment and awarded $50,000 to five claimants. According to OFO, the Agency investigated the claim which produced evidence in support of the allegation. The Commission found that, as no other probationary employee was available as a comparator, complainant established a prima facie case of discrimination by creating an inference of race and color discrimination. They also referred to Black children or mixed-race children as 'porch monkeys' or 'Oreo babies.' 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. Here are the five agencies with more than 1,000 employees with the highest complaint rates in fiscal 2012: Government Printing Office: 1.22 percent. Additionally, the restaurant will overhaul its hiring procedures and has agreed to institute practices aimed at meeting hiring targets consistent with the labor market in each of the locations in which it has facilities. The complaint also alleged that defendant failed to retain employment applications. 0720100034 (Apr. In March 2004, a Ruby Tuesday franchise agreed to pay $32,000 to resolve an EEOC lawsuit, alleging race discrimination in hiring against two African American college students who were refused employment as food servers in favor of several Caucasian applicants with less or similar experience and qualifications. consent decree filed July 24, 2017). The EEOC also claimed that four White employees were harassed by their White co-workers because they associated with African-American employees. See Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972, Pub. In addition to the $100,000 payment, Sears has agreed to take specified actions designed to prevent future discrimination, including the posting of anti-discrimination notices to employees, dissemination of its anti-discrimination policy and providing anti-discrimination training to employees. The only black front desk attendant also was terminated, while other non-Black front desk workers were allowed to continue their employment. Five Times the EEOC Joined Court Battles to Help Workers in 2022 In January 2010, an international designer and manufacturer of medical devices agreed to pay $250,000 to settle EEOC's Title VII lawsuit alleging race discrimination. In April 2011, a provider of operational support software and back office services deployed by cable and broadband operators worldwide agreed to pay $60,000 to settle a race and national origin discrimination lawsuit. Finally, the company will provide written reports to the EEOC regarding any race discrimination or racial harassment complaints by employees. The company also must submit reports to the EEOC on its compliance with the consent decree. 1-844-234-5122 (ASL Video Phone) A Heads-Up For Employers: EEOC Increases Enforcement Activities - Forbes 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. Some of the logistics employees had been employed at BMW for several years, working for the various logistics services providers utilized by BMW since the opening of the plant in 1994. 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. In December 2016, the EEOC affirmed the Administrative Judge's (AJ) finding of race and age discrimination involving a 47-year old Black applicant. The jury also found that one employee was fired in retaliation for complaining about the hostile environment. 12, 2013). In October 2007, the Commission obtained $2 million for approximately 50 claimants in this Title VII lawsuit alleging that defendant subjected employees in its three Illinois restaurant/gift stores to sex and race discrimination and retaliation, causing the constructive discharge of some employees. Supreme Court Rules In Cases Involving Age Discrimination, Traffic Pursuant to the consent decree settling the suit, the Hamilton Growers will exercise good faith in hiring and retaining qualified workers of American national origin and African-American workers for all farm work positions, including supervisory positions. According to the EEOC's lawsuit, the store manager of the Port Huron, Mich., location made derogatory, race-based comments to the only African American employee. However, none of the lawsuits filed in January were publicized. According to the EEOC lawsuit, an over 40, African-American female employee who worked in loss prevention at several Sears stores in the Oklahoma City area, from 1982 until her termination in March of 2010, was passed over for promotion to supervisor several times beginning in 2007 in favor of younger, less experienced, White males. The EEOC alleged that the store engaged in color discrimination when a Bangladeshi employee who was assigned to be store manager of a Staten Island location allegedly was told by her district supervisor that Staten Island was a predominantly White neighborhood and that she should change her dark skin color if she wanted to work in the area. Allegedly, the company disciplined an African-American quality control supervisor for having facial hair and using a cell phone during work, while Caucasian employees were not reprimanded for similar conduct. Co., No. 7:14-CV-136 (M.D. The harassment included racial slurs, explicit sexual comments and gestures and threats. Although the assistant complained repeatedly to NYU management and human resources personnel, NYU took months to investigate and then took virtually no action to curb the supervisor's conduct. Association with a disabled person is enough to qualify for protection. However, the employer did not fire a Caucasian employee who they left two hours early on two different days because he was tired.