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OPA News Release: [12/01/2003]
Contact Name: Dolline
Hatchett
Phone Number: (202) 693-4651
U.S. Labor Department and Weyerhaeuser Company Reach
Settlement of $256,000 for 30 Minority Workers
Agreement Resolves Findings of Discrimination at
Bellevue, Wash. Facility
WASHINGTON—The Weyerhaeuser Company has agreed to settle
findings by the U.S. Department of Labor that one of its plants discriminated
against qualified minority applicants. The agreement settles the
department’s allegations that the company failed to afford minority
applicants equal employment opportunities in its hiring process for the general
laborer positions at its Bellevue, Wash. Corrugated Packaging Plant. In this
case, Weyerhaeuser inherited the discrimination case as a “successor
employer.” The plant was formerly known as Willamette Industries.
“This settlement of $256,000 reflects the Labor Department’s
continued commitment to vigorously fighting systemic discrimination in the
workplace,” said Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao. “We will continue to
protect American workers by pursuing employers that engage in unlawful
practices.”
The Labor Department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance
Programs (OFCCP) found during a compliance review that a total of thirty
minorities were subject to discriminatory hiring practices. As part of the
settlement, the Weyerhaeuser Company will distribute $87,803 in back pay and
interest to those applicants. In addition, the company agreed to hire six of
the minority applicants, paying them a total of $167,910 in annualized salary
and benefits. The Weyerhaeuser Company further agreed to revise its hiring and
selection procedures at the Bellevue Plant to prevent future discrimination
against minority applicants. The total monetary value in this case is
$255,713.
OFCCP, an agency of the Labor Department’s Employment Standards
Administration, enforces Executive Order 11246 and other laws that prohibit
employment discrimination by federal contractors. The agency monitors federal
contractors to ensure that they provide equal employment opportunities without
regard to race, gender, color, religion, national origin, disability or
veterans’ status.
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