MEMPHIS, Tenn. (Legal Newsline) — The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has announced SFI of Tennessee LLC will pay $210,000 after allegations of race discrimination.
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.
The three employees worked in the supply chain department at SFI and allegedly had no performance issues before their discharges. According to EEOC, SFI replaced the black employees with white employees. The agency alleges these actions were motivated by race.
Purported conduct of this nature violates Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. In addition to monetary relief, the company must provide race discrimination training to all employees.
“Race should never factor into an employer's decision to terminate a person's employment,” said Faye A. Williams, regional attorney of EEOC's Memphis District Office, which has jurisdiction over Arkansas, Tennessee and portions of Mississippi. “If it does, it violates the law, and EEOC will seek to rectify such discriminatory acts. In this case, we are pleased that SFI of Tennessee chose to resolve the matter without protracted litigation.”