digg this | mixx! | reddit | del.icio.us | Newsvine | |  e-mail article |  print | post comments | NEWSLETTER ©DiversityInc. Reproduction in any format is absolutely prohibited.

FedEx Express will shell out $53.5 million to settle a racial-bias case if a district court approves the proposed settlement on Friday. FedEx Express will pay a heavy price tag to settle a class-action racial-discrimination lawsuit filed in November 2003 on behalf of black and Latino employees. The lawsuit alleges systemic bias in pay, performance evaluations, promotion and discipline throughout FedEx's western region in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act.

If the FedEx Express settlement is approved by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, the $53-million award could benefit 20,000 hourly and entry-level employees who have worked in FedEx's western region since October 1999, and would be among the 10 largest bias settlements in U.S. courts, reports Law.com.

In the consent decree, FedEx Express continues to deny that it practices discrimination. "Let me be clear--FedEx Express does not discriminate and did not discriminate in this case--period," FedEx Express President and CEO David J. Bronczek said in a statement. "We voluntarily entered into this consent decree to avoid the likely greater expense of continued proceedings in an unpredictable and often irrational litigation environment. We will continue to hold all of our employees to the same high performance standards people have come to expect from FedEx."

Plaintiffs sought certification of two separate classes. The first is a "Minority Employee Class" of black and Latino employees working in domestic-ground operations and air-ground freight services in FedEx's western region who claimed FedEx relegated them to part-time and low-responsibility positions, paid them less, disciplined them more frequently and harshly than whites for similar offenses and limited access to promotion opportunities by requiring they pass the Basic Skills Test to be considered, which court documents say disqualify two-thirds of black candidates off the bat.

The second class, comprised of entry-level black operations managers, alleged pay inequity and unfair disciplinary action compared with whites in equivalent positions. The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California granted the plaintiffs' class-action status in September 2005, and the federal trial was set to begin April 2.

As part of the settlement, FedEx will abandon the Basic Skills Test as a requirement for advancement. The data indicates that only 47 percent of black and 62 percent of Latino employees pass the test, on average, a statistically significant disparate impact on people of color, according to class counsel James Finberg, a partner with the Cailf.-based firm Altshuler Berzon. FedEx also has committed to increasing objectivity and transparency in its performance-evaluation processes, and will issue guidelines for the reformed protocol to ensure the policies do not adversely impact people of color.

"Discrimination is not only evil; it's stupid," Finberg told Law.com. "And I think FedEx, by embracing this decree, will be a better company."

Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Bias Case Moved to Federal Court

A racial-discrimination lawsuit involving BCI Coca-Cola Bottling Co. of Los Angeles, owned by Coca-Cola Enterprises, may be tossed out just one week before the U.S. Supreme Court was to hear the arguments. The case, filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on behalf of a black employee in 2002 who allegedly was fired on the basis of race, would be reassigned to a lower federal court. It's not clear why the agenda changed last minute. Why is this case such a big deal? Read more.

The Coca-Cola Co owns 35 percent of Coca-Cola Enterprises--the world's largest bottler of Coca-Cola products.

(See also: Avoid Lawsuits: Find Out Now If You Are Breaking the Law)

Get legal updates from noted legal attorney and former EEOC chair Gil Casellas, writing exclusively for DiversityInc. His monthly column appears on the web site and in the magazine. Read the latest EEO Law and Diversity Update.

More from Today's Diversity News
<< PREVIOUS ITEM | NEXT ITEM >>

digg this | mixx! | reddit | del.icio.us | Newsvine | |  e-mail article |  print | post comments | NEWSLETTER

Send Your Comments About This Article Now