New York Civil Rights Violation Lawyer from The Perecman Firm Comments on a Rare Race Discrimination Lawsuit
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) alleges that BassPro knowingly and systematically discriminated against qualified black and Hispanic applicants when hiring workers for their retail stores

NEW YORK, NY, October 01, 2011 /24-7PressRelease/ -- A rare race discrimination lawsuit (Case 4:11-cv-03425) was filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) against Bass Pro Outdoor World.

The federal government sued the national retail chain alleging racial discrimination in its hiring practices. The lawsuit could involve people who applied to work at Bass Pro since 2005.

"The number of lawsuits against companies claiming racial discrimination is currently fairly small because parties usually reach settlements out of court," said New York civil rights violation lawyer, David Perecman, founder of The Perecman Firm, one of New York's civil rights violation law firms.

The EEOC filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas.

According to the EEOC, Bass Pro was knowingly engaging in a systematic pattern of employment discrimination against Black and Hispanic job applicants since November 2005.

According to the employment discrimination lawsuit, qualified Blacks and Hispanics were routinely rejected for cashier, managerial and other positions. The race discrimination lawsuit also said managers of stores in Houston, Louisiana and other locations used discriminatory language to explain their reasoning.

Included in the allegations of discrimination in the workplace, a manager of a Bass Pro Shop in Indiana was seen discarding employment applications, saying the name on one application "sounded like a 'n------ name,'" and telling a co-worker that "n-----s steal and did not make good employees."

According to court documents available to New York civil rights violations lawyers, a Houston area store manager told his human resource manager "it was getting a little dark in here you need to hire some white people."

According to the race discrimination lawsuit, another Bass Pro human resources manager told federal investigators that the assistant general manager rejected a qualified black candidate for a position at a store in Louisiana, explaining he "really doesn't fit our profile."

Allegations also include claims that Bass Pro refused to hire Hispanic workers, quoting an employee who screened applications as saying that "Hispanics should be shot at the border by the Border Patrol."

"The situations mentioned in the race discrimination lawsuit are highly indicative of race discrimination," said Perecman, a New York civil rights violation lawyer with over 30 years of experience assisting clients through discrimination cases.

Also in the lawsuit, managers at some stores allegedly retaliated against employees who opposed the unlawful discriminatory practices. Apparently employees who complained were pressured to withdraw their complaints, subjected to heightened scrutiny or, in some cases, fired.

"Employers are prohibited from retaliating against an employee for opposing race discrimination. This includes situations where a co-worker who is not the victim of the discrimination speaks out against the discrimination," said New York civil rights violation lawyer Perecman. "Opposing any practice that is unlawful under the employment discrimination statute is a constitutionally protected right."

The discrimination lawsuit seeks back pay with interest, compensatory and punitive damages, "rightful place" hiring of mistreated employees and applicants, and re-instatement "where appropriate." The discrimination lawsuit also seeks an order requiring Bass Pro to change the alleged racially-biased hiring procedures.

Bass Pro Shops issued a statement denying the employment discrimination allegations.

If a person suspects that he or she has been treated unfairly because of his or her race, they should contact an experienced New York civil rights violation lawyer. Lawyers at The Perecman Firm are knowledgeable of New York state, New York City and federal legislation that protects people of all races, ethnicities, and gender.

The expert civil rights violation lawyers at The Perecman Firm handle all types of workplace discrimination and employment discrimination claims.

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Penni Horwitz
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