Black construction workers called out racism in team meeting — and got fired, feds say
Allegations of rampant racism at a construction site in Tennessee — including segregated crews and porta-potties littered with references to white power and the KKK — has prompted a civil rights lawsuit.
The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company, a general contractor that worked on the Google data center in Clarksville, Tennessee, is accused of violating the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by actively discriminating against Black workers on the job site and firing two employees after they complained.
The suit was filed Thursday by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, or EEOC, which is the federal agency tasked with safeguarding and enforcing anti-discrimination laws in the workplace.
Representatives for Whiting-Turner did not immediately respond to McClatchy News’ request for comment on Monday.
Google has nearly two dozen data centers all over the world, including 14 in the U.S. Its $600 million data center in Clarksville opened in 2019. Allegations of racism at the job site started within three months of them breaking ground in February 2018, according to the EEOC.
At least two Black men were placed at the site through a temporary staffing agency that year. The EEOC said both were assigned to an “all-Black sub-crew” that was frequently given the most physically challenging and least-desirable jobs. Those assignments often entailed working “outdoors without shade” while their white counterparts worked indoors, the complaint states.
The all-Black crew was led by a white supervisor who is accused of frequently referring to them as “boy,” “mother f___ers” and “you.”
According to the complaint, he also told them to “get ya black a__es back to work.”
When one of the employees complained to a supervisor, he was reportedly told to “let it go” because the White crew leader was “old-fashioned.”
The EEOC said porta potties at the construction site were covered in offensive graffiti, including references to the KKK and white power. The temporary toilets were also plastered with derogatory words and phrases telling Black people to “go back to Africa,” the agency said.
Two Black employees raised concerns about the alleged racial discrimination during a teem meeting in September 2018. They were fired at the end of the day, the EEOC said.
The fired employees filed charges with the EEOC shortly thereafter. According to court documents, the EEOC sent a letter to Whiting-Turner on Aug. 17 finding there was reasonable cause to believe it violated federal law.
The company was asked to meet with the EEOC to find an appropriate solution, but nothing reportedly came of it.
As a result, Whiting-Turner is accused of fostering a racially hostile work environment and retaliating against members of a protected class in violation of the Civil Rights Act.
The lawsuit seeks an injunction preventing the company from further discriminatory employment practices. The EEOC also asked for back pay for the workers who were fired and damages for a proposed class of Black employees who were reportedly also mistreated.
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