Bass pro to pay $10.5 million to settle EEOC hiring
discrimination and retaliation suit
Outdoor Equipment Chain Discriminated in Hiring and Punished Employees
for Complaining, Federal Agency Charged
HOUSTON –
Springfield, Mo.-based Bass Pro Outdoor World, LLC, a leading retailer of
fishing, camping, and hunting equipment and apparel, has agreed to pay $10.5
million and provide other significant relief to settle a hiring discrimination
and retaliation lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.
The nationwide
agreement seeks to strengthen and improve Bass Pro’s hiring and recruiting
practices of African-Americans and Hispanics, and resolves a
pattern-or-practice lawsuit filed by the EEOC on Sept. 21, 2011. The EEOC’s suit charged that the company
discriminated in hiring at its retail stores, unlawfully retaliated against
employees who opposed practices they believed to be unlawful, and failed to
adhere to federal record-keeping laws and regulations.
A central focus of
the agreement is strengthening Bass Pro’s diversity efforts and its commitment
to non-discriminatory hiring, including appointment of a director of diversity
and inclusion, affirmative outreach efforts to increase diversity in its
workforce, updated EEO policies and hiring practices, and annual EEO training
for management and non-management employees.
“The EEOC is
pleased to have reached what the agency believes to be a fair resolution,” said
EEOC Deputy General Counsel James Lee. “We look forward to working with Bass
Pro in implementing the consent decree.”
EEOC Houston
District Office Regional Attorney Rudy Sustaita said, “The EEOC commends Bass
Pro for its efforts in bringing the pending litigation to a conclusion, and for
its commitment to hiring a diverse workforce.”
The EEOC is responsible for
enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Further
information about the EEOC is available on its website at www.eeoc.gov.
###
|
