EEOC Sues Recycling Company for Sex Discrimination
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has filed a lawsuit against Delaware-based TCI of Alabama, LLC, a recycler of large items such as transformers and electrical equipment, charging that the company violated federal employment laws when it discriminated against female job applicants in its Pell City, Alabama location.
According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, since August 1, 2020, TCI discriminated against a class of female employees by systematically denying them laborer positions because of their sex. The EEOC further charges that TCI carried out this discrimination by instructing multiple staffing agencies not to place or refer female candidates for TCI’s laborer positions.
This conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits employers from discriminating based on sex. The EEOC filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama after attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. The EEOC is seeking monetary damages including back pay, compensatory damages, and punitive damages for the class of women denied positions by the company as well as injunctive relief designed to prevent such unlawful conduct in the future.
Understanding sex discrimination lawsuits
According to the EEOC, sex discrimination involves treating someone (like an applicant or employee) unfavorably because of that individual’s sex. This includes an individual’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or pregnancy. Discriminating against an individual because of their status as a transgender person is considered a violation of Title VII.
Sex discrimination lawsuits are slightly different insofar as different allegations are made against a company in terms of sexual harassment lawsuits. The law makes it illegal to harass an individual because of their sex. Harassment can include “sexual harassment” such as unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature. Harassment does not have to, however, be of a sexual nature. It can include offensive remarks about a person’s sex. For instance, derogatory comments about women in general would be considered harassment for the purposes of the law.
Both the victim and the harasser may be of any sex. The victim or harasser can also be of the same sex or a different sex.
According to the EEOC, the law does not prohibit minor teasing, offhand comments, or isolated incidents that are neither frequent nor serious. However, harassment is illegal when it is so frequent or severe that it creates a hostile or offensive work environment or when it results in an adverse employment decision such as firing or demotion.
The harasser can be the victim’s supervisor, a co-worker, a supervisor from another area, or someone who is not even an employee of the employer, but a member of the public. In any case, the company is required to protect the victim of harassing conduct from the individuals who are perpetrating the conduct.
Talk to an Atlanta, Georgia Sex Discrimination Lawyer Today
Have you been fired, passed up for a job or promotion, or otherwise suffered an adverse employment decision based on your sex? If so, you may be entitled to damages. The Atlanta employment law attorneys at Forsythe Law Firm, LLC can help you file suit against your employer and recover damages related to their illegal conduct. Call today to learn more.
Source:
eeoc.gov/sex-based-discrimination
