Sureste Property Group to Pay $75,000 in EEOC Race Discrimination Lawsuit

ATLANTA – Sureste Property Group and its divisions, Sureste Property Services and Sureste Development, a real estate operating company and asset management firm, agreed to pay $75,000 and provide other relief to settle a race discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, Sureste violated federal law when it fired its first and only Black project development manager because of his race. The project development manager performed well, despite being assigned more work than his white counterparts, but the company terminated him less than a year after his hire, claiming first that he was “lazy” and not a good fit for the company’s “culture.” Later, the company claimed that his role had been eliminated, but less than a month after firing him, Sureste promoted a significantly less-qualified white employee to the same position.

Such alleged conduct violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits companies from discriminating against employees based on their race. The EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Atlanta Division (EEOC v. Sureste Property Group, et al., Civil Action No. 1:24-CV-01769) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process.

The federal court approved the three-year consent decree resolving the EEOC’s lawsuit. The decree is binding on the named defendants and their subsidiaries, as well as future successor companies. In addition to providing monetary relief, Sureste will distribute anti-harassment and anti-retaliation policies, post a notice in the workplace informing employees of the settlement, and provide specialized training to all supervisors, managers, and employees. Sureste will also provide the EEOC with periodic reports regarding complaints of race discrimination during the decree’s term.

“This case underscores the sad reality that racism in the workplace still exists,” said Marcus G. Keegan, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Atlanta District Office. “The EEOC is pleased that the affected individual will be compensated, and that Sureste Property Group has agreed to take steps to ensure that similar Title VII violations do not occur there in the future.”

Darrell E. Graham, district director of the Atlanta office, said, “All people have the right to be free from race discrimination in the workplace. The EEOC is proud to serve as a vehicle for individuals to enforce those rights, particularly when, as in this case, employees have entered into arbitration agreements that would otherwise prevent them from bringing their claims in a public forum.”

For more information about laws prohibiting race discrimination in the workplace, visit  https://www.eeoc.gov/racecolor-discrimination.

The Atlanta District Office has jurisdiction over Georgia and the South Carolina counties of Allendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton, Dorchester, Georgetown, Hampton, Jasper, and Williamsburg.

The EEOC prevents and remedies unlawful employment discrimination and advances equal opportunity for all. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov. Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.