Chicago Dept. of Water Management Class Action Alleges Hostile Work Environment

The Chicago Department of Water Management is facing class action lawsuit allegations of discrimination and claims that it fostered a hostile work environment.

The workplace discrimination class action lawsuit was filed June 29 in Illinois federal court by plaintiffs Derrick Edmond, Katherine Ealy, Craig Robinson, Eddie Cooper Jr., Vicki Hill, Robert T. Laws Jr. and Adebola Fegbemi, all of whom are current or former employees of the Chicago Dept. of Water Management.

The plaintiffs accuse the Chicago Department of Water Management of creating an environment plagued by racism and sexism, as evidenced by the firing of at least four individuals within the company in the last two months over offensive emails discovered earlier this year by Inspector General Joe Ferguson.

The content of these emails reportedly included racist, homophobic, Islamophobic and sexist messages and jokes.

According to the hostile work environment class action lawsuit, “Defendants continue to engage in deliberate and unlawful policies, patterns, and employment practices to create and proliferate a hostile and abusive work environment based on race that includes violence, intimidation, retaliation, and constructive discharge against the Plaintiffs, and the class of similarly-situated former and current DWM employees.”

The plaintiffs, who all assert they are members of a protected Class, say they have been subjected to adverse employment actions that are not based on their job qualifications or performance.

According to the hostile work environment class action lawsuit, these adverse employment actions include (but are not limited to) being assigned less desirable shifts, work assignments and days off; being denied promotions, transfers, overtime, training opportunities and compensation for work performed; being subjected to violence and/or unwelcome racially-charged conduct; being subjected to retaliatory discipline, transfers and/or termination; and intimidation and harassment based on race.

The plaintiffs claim that the Chicago Dept. of Water Management has created an employment scheme that requires black employees to work as much as three times longer than white employees before they receive a promotion. Further, they allege that job postings that can be filled by qualified black employees are frequently left unfilled “until a handpicked Caucasian candidate is chosen.”

The Chicago Dept. of Water Management class action lawsuit asserts violations of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act and the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

The plaintiffs seek to represent two Classes: a Race Class and a Wage Class.

The proposed Race Class would include: “All current and former Department employees who have been subject to the ongoing and continuing violations of a hostile work environment and/or deliberate acts of discrimination during their employment based on their race.”

The proposed Wage Class would include: “All Department employees who are or have been employed by the Department in any classification as non-exempt FLSA personnel who worked job classifications senior to their own or in addition to their own without receiving appropriate compensation for each hour worked, including overtime compensation.”

The Chicago Dept. of Water Management class action lawsuit seeks declaratory and/or injunctive relief, compensatory damages, punitive damages, costs, attorneys’ fees, and any other relief deemed appropriate by the court.

The plaintiffs are represented by William C. Martin and Rebecca R. Kaiser of Henderson Parks LLC.

The Chicago Department of Water Management Class Action Lawsuit is Edmond, et al. v. City of Chicago, et al., Case No. 1:17-cv-04858, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

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