Birmingham Jury Awards $314,000 in Discrimination Case
Last week, a federal jury in Birmingham returned a $314,000 verdict in favor of Albert Thomas and against Chemical Lime Co. located in Calera. Mr. Thomas worked for Chemical Lime for 25 years, and was fired after he filed a charge with the EEOC. The lawsuit contained 8 claims, including racially charged allegations that a supervisor left what appeared to be Klu Klux Klan garb in plain sight for Thomas and that one of his supervisors held up one of the hoods while making inappropriate comments and gestures, including "you won't be working here much longer, you will be with your brothers on the street" and threatening to "fire his black" backside. This case is of particular interest since the jury found that Chemical Lime was not guilty of the underlying allegations, but only of retaliation for firing Thomas after he filed his charge with the EEOC.
Practice pointer. This case demonstrates that not only can the allegations themselves lead to an adverse judgment, but that the claim of retaliation can result in a large verdict, even without a finding that the alleged underlying wrongful conduct took place.
UNION MEMBERSHIP DOWN IN 2010.
According to USA Today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported last Friday that union membership in 2010 declined by 612,000 from 2009. In 2009, unionized workers represented 12.3% of the workforce, and in 2010, this dropped to 11.9%. Private sector union membership fell from 7.2% to 6.9% of the workforce, while Public sector union membership dropped 1.2%. The article points out that Black workers are more likely to be union members than White, Asian or Hispanic workers, that union membership was highest among those 55-65 and lowest among those 16-24, and that New York had the highest union membership rate at 24.2%, while North Carolina, at 3.2%, was the lowest.
Practice pointer. Unions will continue to push into non-union business sectors in Alabama and around the country in an effort to grow their numbers. Employers must be aware of any organizing activity in their workplace, and be very careful how they respond. Their are very specific rules and regulations on what can and cannot be done in this situation.
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