[ad_1]
\n<\/p>\n
The suit claims the White worker who eventually quit saw a noose tied by a coworker at the firm\u2019s Dallas location, and another hung on a fence in its Fort Worth, Texas, yard in 2019. The four Black workers all became aware of the nooses during their employment, the suit alleges.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n When the White worker complained about the second noose, a branch manager said it was simply a \u201ccowboy knot,\u201d the suit said. In another instance, a different White worker complimented one of the Black workers for not being \u201clazy\u2026 like other [Black people],\u201d but used a derogatory term instead.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Lighting bolt \u201cSS\u201d stickers<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a>, emblematic of Nazi Germany\u2019s special police force, also adorned cranes at the company\u2019s Fort Worth yard, the suit alleged.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n G. Mark Jodon, an attorney in the Houston office of Littler who\u2019s listed as TNT Crane & Rigging\u2019s representative in court documents, did not immediately respond to email or phone messages seeking comment. Representatives at TNT\u2019s corporate headquarters also did not immediately respond to Construction Dive\u2019s queries. \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n According to TNT\u2019s website, the firm has 40 branches throughout North America and more than 620 cranes.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The suit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas in Fort Worth, is the latest salvo from the employment agency against a construction firm following a <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>May 2022 hearing that found racism<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a> and discrimination occur frequently on jobsites.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe allegations in this case echo the disturbing accounts shared during the EEOC\u2019s recent hearing on discrimination and harassment in the construction industry,\u201d said EEOC Chair Charlotte Burrows in <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>a news release announcing the suit<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a>. \u201cAt a time when job opportunities in construction are rapidly growing thanks to historic federal investments, workers face significant harassment and discrimination that can prevent them from getting and keeping jobs in construction. The EEOC will continue to robustly enforce the law to ensure equal opportunity in the construction industry, and every industry.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Under Burrows, who was appointed to EEOC\u2019s chair by President Joe Biden in 2021, the agency has stepped up its focus on construction firms. It called out the industry by name as a sector of \u201cparticular concern\u201d in <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>its proposed strategic enforcement plan<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a>, and said construction stands out from other industries for \u201cegregious incidents of harassment\u201d in <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>a report issued earlier this year<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n EEOC\u2019s suit seeks compensatory and punitive damages for the four Black employees. It seeks back pay, compensatory damages and punitive damages, as well as reinstatement or front pay for the White employee who eventually resigned.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The TNT suit follows an $80,000 judgment earlier this month against Coastal Drilling East, a Pennsylvania-based geotechnical construction services firm, for similar displays of nooses in the workplace, <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span>according to EEOC\u2019s website<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nWidespread in construction<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n