On May 21, 2004, an African American employee of A.K. Steel Corporation brought suit against his employer under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and 42 U.S.C. § 1981. The plaintiff filed this action a year after bringing a related suit with other employees of A.K. Steel. (See (LAKE v. A.K. STEEL CORPORATION). The plaintiffs claimed the defendant permitted a hostile workspace that included the use of racial slurs against the plaintiffs, racially graphic graffiti, and displays of Klu Klux Klan videos.

After conducting partial discovery, the defendants filed a motion for summary judgment. Before receiving a ruling on the motion for summary judgment, the plaintiff filed a motion to consolidate with the related actions, Lake v. A.K. Steel Corporation and EEOC v AK Steel Corp.

On September 11, 2006, the court granted the motion to consolidate. On January 31, 2007, the parties in the consolidated case settled. The three-year settlement agreement included anti-discrimination and anti-retaliation clauses, and a confidentiality clause regarding the private plaintiffs' and complainants' involvement in the case. The agreement required A.K. Steel to post notice of the agreement, maintain records of all incidents of racial harassment, and make these records available to the EEOC within ten days of request. A.K. Steel was also required to provide a training session for all employees, including separate training for supervisory and managerial personnel. New employees would receive training during new employee orientation. The corporation agreed to pay a total of $550,000, including $160,000 to the plaintiff in this case. The docket sheet does not show any further enforcement; the case was presumably closed in 2010.

Amanda Stephens - 02/02/2019


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