In August 2006, the Memphis Office of the EEOC filed this lawsuit against Gilley Construction Co., Inc. in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee alleging discrimination on the basis of race, African-American, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Specifically, the complaint alleged the defendants were paid less than their Caucasian and Hispanic counterparts, were sometimes left working while the others left the construction site, and were subsequently terminated based upon their race. Following some discovery, the parties settled the lawsuit in July 2007 through a consent decree.

The two-year decree, containing an anti-discrimination provision, required the defendants to: make compliance reports, provide a neutral reference for the complainants, provide EEO training, post notice of employee rights, and pay $60,000 to be distributed among four complaining parties. The docket sheet does not show any further enforcement; the case was presumably closed in 2009.

David Friedman - 06/12/2008


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