Swissport Fueling, Inc., pays $250,000 to settle a national origin discrimination lawsuit. The discrimination lawsuit was filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC“). According to published accounts, workers who were from various African nations, including Sudan, Nigeria, Ghana and Sierra Leone were subjected to unfair treatment because of their place of origin. The lawsuit alleges that a Swissport manager routinely called the African fuelers “monkeys.” Obviously, this would be an offensive comment and show the distain that the company had towards this group of workers.
When companies allow management to operate in this fashion, bad things happen. In this case, the company had to paid a great deal of money and ended up with a good amount of negative publicity. Management should always ensure that everyone has the proper training on how to treat fellow employees.
“It is against federal civil rights laws for an employer to single out any group, including the immigrant community, by subjecting it to a hostile work environment based upon its national origin, race, and color.” said EEOC Attorney Mary Jo O’Neill