Federal lawsuit filed against Don’s Specialty Meats alleging racial harassment

Don’s Specialty Meats is being accused by the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission of subjecting a Black employee to a hostile work environment all because of his race.

BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) - Don’s Specialty Meats is being accused by the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission of subjecting a Black employee to a hostile work environment all because of his race.

The EEOC alleges Don's Specialty Meats, a food preparer and retailer based in Scott and Carencro, La, violated federal law in a lawsuit filed on September 24, 2021.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, the general manager at Don’s Specialty Meats, Inc. routinely referred to the employee as “Black boy,” “the Black boy,” and “little Black guy,” and he regularly used the “n” word in the employee’s presence. Don’s Specialty Meats, Inc. also identified the employee as “Black boy” on the schedule, while identifying non-Black employees by name.

The lawsuit also alleges that when the worker’s supervisor repeatedly called the worker a “bitch ass [n——r]” in front of managers and other employees, Don’s Specialty Meats, Inc. dismissed the employee but not the supervisor—for the rest of the day.

The lawsuit says the employee eventually resigned due to intolerable work conditions.
“The ‘n’ word is among the most offensive and inflammatory racial slurs in English, and its very
use communicates racial bigotry,” said Rudy Sustaita, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Houston District
Office.

The EEOC alleges that Don's Specialty Meats violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits race-related harassment.

The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, Lafayette Division.

Don's Specialty Meats has not responded to the lawsuit and a hearing date has not been set.