Prime to pay $3 million to settle discrimination suit brought by EEOC

[kscarbel2]

Commercial Carrier Journal (CCJ)  /  June 2, 2016

Prime Inc., the 16th largest carrier in the U.S., has agreed to pay more than $3 million to settle a discrimination-based lawsuit brought by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on behalf of more than 60 female truck drivers who claimed they were denied jobs at the company.

Multiple requests made by CCJ to Prime asking for comment regarding the lawsuit went unreturned.

The EEOC charges that a Prime policy stating that female drivers only be trained by female trainers effectively denied women driving jobs at the company based on their gender.

The EEOC said this week Prime has agreed to pay $250,000 to resolve a discrimination claim brought by one of the female truckers. The carrier agreed last month, says the EEOC, to pay $2.8 million in lost wages and damages for 63 other women who said they were denied jobs.

Prime’s adoption of the policy was seemingly well-intended — to prevent male trainers from sexually harassing female truck operators. Prime instituted the same-sex trainer policy in 2004 following a separate EEOC-brought lawsuit claiming the carrier had violated Title VII provisions.

Prime’s not the only major U.S. carrier to run into sexual harassment issues regarding male trainers and female drivers. CRST International, though eventually absolved of liability, spent years tangled in an EEOC lawsuit surrounding sexual harassment claims. The Supreme Court just last month issued a decision on behalf of CRST, saying it was owed the millions of dollars in legal fees it spent defending itself against the EEOC suit.

The court overseeing Prime’s suit, however, determined Prime’s same-sex trainer policy “forced female trainees to wait extended periods of time [to be trained….which resulted in most female trainers being denied employment,” according to an EEOC press release.

The court permanently barred Prime from continuing with the policy in a May 27-issued order.