Apogee Enterprises, EFCO Corp. Face Civil Lawsuit Alleging Racial Discrimination, Retaliation

A Missouri man has filed a civil lawsuit against EFCO Corp. and Apogee Enterprises in the U.S. District Court Western District Court of Missouri. The suit alleges racial discrimination, harassment and retaliation throughout his employment with the defendants.

The plaintiff, David White, who is Black, was an extrusion tech for the defendants from December 2021 to April 2022.

According to the court documents, White alleges that his shift leader would tell racist jokes in his presence. When White went to his supervisor to complain the supervisor insisted that they first meet with human resources and plant managers instead of involving corporate.

Once the defendants met with White and started an investigation, White was told to stay home. The defendants then met with the shift leader and proceeded to transfer him to a different department. Following the transfer, White returned to work on March 24, 2022. He claims that when he returned he was harassed and ridiculed for “getting someone fired,” the court documents state.

Days after his return, White alleges that he approached a co-worker to offer a beverage and noticed that his co-worker was wearing a confederate flag ring and hat. The co-worker began to act aggressively toward White, refused to speak to him and instead gave him aggressive looks and body language.

White refused to return to work after the incident. He alleges that the treatment he received while employed with the defendants constitutes “race discrimination and harassment in violation of 42 U.S.C. § 1981.”

He was terminated via letter on June 28, 2022.

The court documents claim that the defendants knew or should have known of the discrimination and harassment against White. The defendants also failed to implement prompt and appropriate corrective action. White alleges that the defendants maintained inadequate written policies and procedures with respect to discrimination based on race.

Additionally, White claims that the defendants’ conduct constitutes retaliation for his reports and complaints of discrimination and harassment.

“White was damaged by the retaliation and is entitled to all remedies available to him, including but not limited to damages for loss of income, embarrassment, humiliation, emotional distress, damage to his reputation, diminution in earnings capacity and other damages as yet undetermined,” the court documents state.

White requests that the court grant him judgment against the defendants in an amount that is fair and reasonable, for punitive damages, costs and attorneys’ fees and for such other relief.