United Airlines (UAL+2.20%) just settled a racial discrimination complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The company had been sued by the agency over its 2021 treatment of a Denver airport worker.
“The allegations arose at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when Asian Americans and those of Asian descent experienced public hostility and violence because of their race and/or ethnicity based on a common misconception that Asians caused the virus or pandemic,” the EEOC said in a statement. “The allegations demonstrated how public vitriol manifested as backlash discrimination in the workplace.”
At the heart of the complaint was the treatment of a Mongolian American food and beverage transportation attendant for United Airlines at Denver International Airport. In January 2021, according to a complaint filed September in federal court, the worker was eating in a break room when a senior supervisor asked him to pull his face mask back up.
Though the worker replied “yes, sir,” the supervisor thought he said something else and used a racial slur before twisting the employee’s arm behind his back, berating him, and asking whether he valued his job at United Airlines. When a junior supervisor told him there was nothing that could be done immediately because of the berating supervisor’s seniority, the transportation attendant quit.
Further, the EEOC’s suit said that United did not follow up with the attendant until May 2021, four months after he quit. Following an investigation, the berating supervisor, according to the complaint, “signed a Separation Agreement and General Release that allowed him to ‘retire in lieu of termination’ from United.” He was allowed to keep his retirement benefits including a neutral reference letter for future employment and a retiree travel pass.
“Such alleged conduct violated Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which protects individuals from workplace discrimination and harassment and prohibits retaliation against persons who report such abuses,” the EEOC said.
In a statement provided to Quartz, United Airlines said that it offered the attendant his job back, but he declined.
“United is pleased that settling this case will avoid protracted litigation for all parties,” the airline said.
As part of the settlement, the company will pay the attendant $99,000 and give him 75,000 flight miles in addition to a three-year EEOC consent decree. It also had to modify its workplace violence policy to ensure that investigations begin with 72 hours of an incident.
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