EEOC sues Shimmick for discrimination, retaliation

An article from

Dive Transient:

• Shimmick Construction allegedly engaged in sex-basically based entirely discrimination in opposition to a lady employee and forced her to resign after she cooperated in a subsequent investigation, basically based entirely on a lawsuit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Fee. 
• On the U.S. Navy Corps of Engineers’ Chickamauga Lock Alternative project in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the assign Shimmick is the high contractor, the woman used to be subjected to sex discrimination and gender-basically based entirely slurs, basically based entirely on the swimsuit. Men working on the positioning cursed at her and refused to study her instructions, even supposing she used to be performing long-established foreman, basically based entirely on the swimsuit. One man allegedly called her a derogatory name for a female physique portion. 
• After the woman’s fiancé, also a broken-down employee on the positioning, filed the criticism with Shimmick that precipitated the investigation, a supervisor gave the woman a assortment of straight away switching to the nightshift — no topic her must situation up for childcare — or handing in her keys and leaving her job, basically based entirely on the swimsuit. 

Dive Perception:

Irvine, California-basically based entirely Shimmick, which makes a speciality of gorgeous-scale water projects, disputed the yarn introduced by the lawsuit. 

“We firmly disagree with the characterization of the info alleged in this criticism,” the firm stated in a observation shared with Construction Dive. “Shimmick particularly has a long history of embracing variety and fostering a custom that treats all employees with fairness, appreciate and dignity. We sustain our teams to the very ideal ethical requirements, with honesty, security and professionalism central to all the pieces we attain.”

The EEOC’s lawsuit, filed Sept. 25 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, seeks a everlasting injunction barring Shimmick from conducting retaliation one day, backpay with hobby for the woman employee and punitive damages, amongst diversified remedies. 

“The EEOC prioritizes enforcing anti-retaliation laws, particularly in industries look after construction, to assign sure girls must now not punished for preserving their rights and to ruin down the constraints that perpetuate their underrepresentation,” stated Edmond Sims, performing district director for the EEOC’s Memphis District Set aside aside of job, in a news originate about the swimsuit.

EEOC has stepped up its focal level on discrimination in construction all by plot of President Joe Biden’s administration. It singled out pervasive discrimination in construction in a 2023 dispute and launched an anti-harassment e-book for construction contractors in June.