The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is suing TNT Crane & Rigging, one of the big crane providers in North America, for racial discrimination against four Black employees.
In the August 24 lawsuit, the company allegedly fostered a hostile work environment for employees Edwin Crayton, Lorenzo Smith, Freddie Campbell, and Jason Pradia.
The lawsuit claims employees dealt with a field manager and colleagues using racially offensive language, including the N-word, at work. Hate symbols linked to white supremacy, such as nooses and lightning bolt stickers, were openly shown without consequences.
Smith reported in April of 2018, when he was told by a field manager, “N**ger, if you are going to b**ch about it, you can turn that truck around and take your a** home,” regarding a request to obtain an air conditioning unit.
“TNT knowingly permitted a work environment filled with racist comments and imagery. No employee should have to work in an environment openly hostile to their race, and no employee should suffer reprisal for objecting to discriminatory practices,” EEOC attorney Brian Hawthorne said in a recent news release.
