Proctor Financial to Pay $67,000 to Settle EEOC Retaliation Suit and Avoid Trial

DETROIT – Proctor Financial, Inc., an insurance company based in Troy, Michigan that provides insurance products for residential and commercial properties, will pay $67,000 to settle a retaliation lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

According to the EEOC’s suit, the employee filed a charge with the EEOC in which she alleged that she was denied a promotion due to her race. Roughly three months after she filed her charge, the employee amended the charge to include a claim for race-based pay disparities. Shortly after amending her charge, she was suspended for three days. Prior to filing her charge, she had not been disciplined during her more than eight years with the company. The EEOC says that Proctor unlawfully retaliated against the employee for filing a charge with the agency and complaining about race discrimination.

Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which protects employees who have engaged in activity opposing employment discrimination from unlawful retaliation. The EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan (Case No. 2:19-CV-11911) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.

Under the terms of the three-year consent decree settling the suit, Proctor Financial must pay the employee a total of $67,000, including $651 in back pay for the three-day suspension and $66,348 in compensatory damages. Proctor Financial must also provide the employee with a neutral job reference; distribute its anti-retaliation policies to employees; post a notice which informs employees how to complain about discrimination; and train its workforce on Title VII’s anti-retaliation provisions.

“Employees should be able to freely report concerns about workplace discrimination without being retaliated against, and the EEOC stands ready to protect that right,” said EEOC trial attorney Nedra Campbell. “Proctor Financial’s decision to train its workforce on anti-retaliation provisions of Title VII should be commended.”

Proctor Financial provides specialty insurance products to more than 1,500 financial institutions nationwide. A subsidiary of Brown & Brown, Inc., it provides insurance products to financial institu­tions throughout the country. Proctor Financial has offices in Florida, Michigan, and Ohio.

The EEOC’s Detroit Field Office is part of the Indianapolis District Office, which oversees Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky. and parts of Ohio.                            

For more information on retaliation, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/retaliation.

The EEOC advances opportunity in the workplace by enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov.  Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.