Illinois Labor Union to Pay $110K Over Race Discrimination Lawsuit

Sunnybrook Union, a labor union representing teachers and educational support staff in the Sunnybrook School District in Lansing, Illinois, will pay $110,000 and provide other relief to settle a race discrimination case filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, a black man who worked as a custodian for Sunnybrook School District 171, was denied a promotion on the base of his race. When the school district attempted to promote him to the role of head custodian outside of the terms of their collective bargaining agreement (CBA), the union stopped the promotion by filing a grievance. In other instances where non-black employees were offered promotions or employment terms outside of the CBA, the union did not oppose the actions, and in some cases actively bargained to permit those promotions to go forward.

Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits labor organizations from discriminating against members on the basis of race and causing or attempting to cause an employer to discriminate against an individual because of their race, sex, religion or other protected class. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. Sunnybrook Education Association, IEA-NEA, Case No. 1:23-cv-2804) in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process.

Under the consent decree resolving the case, which will last until approximately the end of the 2026-2027 school year, Sunnybrook Union will pay $110,000 in back pay and compensatory damages to the affected employee. Additionally, Sunnybrook Union will provide training to its officers, will distribute a “know-your-rights” document to bargaining unit members and will provide periodic reports to EEOC on allegations of race discrimination made against Sunnybrook Union to ensure compliance with Title VII.

Source: EEOC

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Illinois