TCI Of Alabama to Pay $90,000 to Settle Retaliation Lawsuit

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. –TCI of Alabama, LLC, a recycling, removal, disposal and repair company, will pay $90,000 and provide other relief to settle a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) retaliation lawsuit, the federal agency announced today.

The EEOC charged that TCI violated federal law by terminating an employee for participating in an internal investigation about a charge filed with the EEOC alleging that TCI’s hiring practices discriminated against females. The employee who was retaliated against had been with TCI for 28 years. Such alleged conduct violates the anti-retaliation provision of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits firing an employee because they engage in protected activity by opposing discrimination or participating in an investigation about a charge. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. TCI of Alabama, LLC) in the Northern District of Alabama Case No. 4:23-cv-1200-CLM.

According to the EEOC’s complaint, after a female job applicant filed a charge of discrimination with the EEOC, TCI interviewed a long-time management employee about its hiring practices. The manager told the company’s investigator that TCI had a practice of not hiring female laborers, which dated back to when the company first opened in 2007. The EEOC alleges that after the manager told the truth about TCI’s discriminatory policy, TCI’s president repeatedly pressured him to “change his story.” When the manager refused to recant, TCI terminated him.

Under the three-year consent decree resolving the lawsuit, TCI will pay $90,000 in monetary damages to the employee it terminated; adopt and distribute an anti-retaliation policy to its employees and all staffing agencies it utilizes; post a notice to employees about the settlement; and provide annual, mandatory training to owners, managers, and employees on the protections of Title VII for employees and applicants.

“Title VII protects employees from retaliation when they participate in their employer’s internal investigation into allegations of discrimination or otherwise oppose illegal discriminatory hiring practices,” said EEOC Birmingham District Director Bradley Anderson.

Marsha Rucker, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Birmingham District said, “Employees willing to stand up against discrimination by telling the truth about illegal practices by their employer are protected by law. The EEOC will aggressively pursue remedies for individuals whose employers retaliate against for exercising their rights under Title VII.”

For more information on retaliation, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/retaliation.

The EEOC's Birmingham District Office has jurisdiction over Alabama, Mississippi (except 17 northern counties) and the Florida Panhandle.

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.