WorldCom Workers Cry Discrimination

In a complaint filed with the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the 150 workers in Denver, Dallas, and other cities claimed that blacks at WorldCom weren’t promoted as often as whites and sometimes forced out of their jobs by a hostile environment. They also alleged that women and older employers were also harassed and discriminated against.

Complaints against the Clinton, Mississippi company include:

• a 61-year-old worker who said she was disciplined for not completing tasks that required her to have a computer password, which she claimed only her younger co-workers were given, and
• a white supervisor who claimed he received a list of African-American supervisors and representatives that his managers didn’t like and wanted “managed” out of the company”. To comply, the supervisor confessed, he gave one female worker deadlines she had to meet on her days off.

Federal law requires workers alleging discrimination to file an EEOC complaint first. If the EEOC accepts the allegations, it can file a federal court lawsuit on the workers’ behalf. In some cases, the EEOC resolves the matter through a settlement.