EEOC WINS PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION AGAINST ADVANTAGE STAFFING, INC.

                                   

DETROIT -- The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced today that it has obtained a consent order from United States District Judge Avern Cohn, after filing an Application for Preliminary Injunction in an egregious case of employment discrimination against Advantage Staffing, Inc.

   

On March 9, 2000, a former employee of Advantage Staffing, Inc. filed a charge of discrimination with the EEOC which alleges that the company was screening applicants for employment on the basis of race, sex, ethnic origin, religion and disability status, all in violation of federal anti-discrimination statutes.  The EEOC obtained reliable documentary and testimonial evidence in support of this charging party's allegations, and it sought immediate judicial relief.  Prior to filing the action, Advantage Staffing, Inc. agreed to the relief sought by the EEOC.

   

United States District Judge Avern Cohn ordered Advantage Staffing, Inc. to consider and place applicants for employment without regard to sex, race, ethnic origin, religion or disability status in considering applicants for placement with its client; to notify all of its employees of the consent order, and to provide a similar notice to all of its clients.  The Court further ordered Advantage Staffing, Inc. to provide the EEOC with the names of its clients and all applicants for employment in the last two years, to enable it to investigate and remedy all violations of the law.

       

EEOC Chairwoman Ida L. Castro said:  "This case represents one of the most important areas for the Commission to investigate and root out unlawful employment discrimination.  Evidence obtained in the case so far shows that Advantage Staffing, Inc. was accepting and complying with job orders from metropolitan Detroit employers that stated, for example, 'no females,' 'no Detroit residents,' and no employees with accents.'"

                           

Ms. Castro added: "It is indeed unacceptable to find such practices still exist, thirty- five years after the passage of the first comprehensive statute prohibiting employment discrimination.  The Commission will continue its work to fully vindicate the public's interest in ending discrimination in the workplace, as well as the interests of the individual victims who were denied equal employment opportunities."

                                     

EEOC General Counsel C. Gregory Stewart said: "The charging party in this case is a very brave woman who stepped forward to uncover an egregious case of employment discrimination that affects virtually every group of applicants.  We take our mission to enforce this nation's anti-discrimination statutes seriously, and to seek justice for those who were unknowingly turned away from jobs they were fully qualified based solely on their race, sex, religion, ethnic origin or disability status."

   

He added: "Employers throughout Michigan and the country should be on notice that they cannot use employment agencies and referral companies to avoid the requirements of federal anti-discrimination laws.  We will seek preliminary injunctions and aggressively pursue litigation whenever we uncover such practices."

   

EEOC enforces Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act; the Equal Pay Act; Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits employment discrimination against people with disabilities in the private sector and state and local governments; prohibitions against discrimination affecting individuals with disabilities in the federal government; and sections of the Civil Rights Act of 1991.  Further information about the Commission is available on the agency's web site at www.eeoc.gov.