CLEVELAND The 24-unit Bahama Breeze chain has agreed to pay $1.26 million dollars to claimants and take several other steps to settle a class-action racial harassment lawsuit, federal officials here said Monday.
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sources said the suit stemmed from the alleged mistreatment of 37 black workers at a Bahama Breeze restaurant in the Cleveland suburb of Beachwood, Ohio.
Bahama Breeze's parent company, Orlando, Fla.-based Darden Restaurants Inc., said the company admits no wrongdoing in the settlement.
"Our company has zero tolerance for any type of discriminatory behavior and continues to believe our policies and practices in the Cleveland Bahama Breeze were and always have been lawful," said Mike Bernstein, director of media and communications for Darden's specialty restaurant group. "However, to avoid a lengthy and costly court case we chose to enter mediation with the EEOC and have agreed on this settlement to end the matter and move on.
"We're proud of our reputation as a company that's committed to diversity," he said.
In its lawsuit against Bahama Breeze, the EEOC alleged that Beachwood-unit managers repeatedly addressed black staff with slurs, imitated what they perceived to be the speech and mannerisms of black employees, and denied black workers breaks given to white employees. Despite the employees’ complaints to management, the alleged harassment continued, the EEOC said.
“No worker should ever have to endure a racially hostile work environment in order to earn a paycheck. It is particularly disturbing when managers engage in and condone the very unlawful conduct they are required to prevent and correct,” said Stuart J. Ishimaru, the EEOC's acting chairman. “This sizeable settlement should remind employers of the possible consequences of a failure to promote and maintain a discrimination-free workplace.”
According to the EEOC, a three-year consent decree resolving the litigation requires Bahama Breeze to:
- Maintain and update its written anti-discrimination policies and procedures in all restaurants nationwide.
- Provide anti-discrimination and diversity training to all of its Beachwood restaurant employees.
- Comply with EEOC monitoring of the decree and periodically provide written reports regarding any discrimination complaints.
- Prominently display and maintain the EEOC poster in all restaurants within the same operational region as the Beachwood restaurant.
Contact Alan J. Liddle at [email protected].