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DISABILITY DISCRIMINATION — 8/28/07

Federal contractor in Louisiana agrees to pay $749,000 for alleged hiring bias

The US Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) has announced that Georgia-Pacific Consumer Operations LLC, Port Hudson Facility in Zachary, Louisiana has settled the department's allegations that the company engaged in hiring discrimination based on race over a two-year period against 399 black applicants for the position of utility worker. OFCCP investigators determined that the company administered pre-employment tests as part of the selection process for utility worker positions that adversely impacted black applicants.

Under the terms of the conciliation agreement, Georgia-Pacific will pay 399 black applicants $749,076 in back pay and interest, immediately correct any discriminatory practice, hire 24 utility workers from the class members who were discriminated against, and undertake extensive self-monitoring measurements for two years to ensure that all hiring practices fully comply with the law.

"Contractors who utilize any testing procedure in their employment selection process, including written and skill tests, must ensure that a test is valid for the particular job if it disproportionately screens out applicants from a protected group," said Fred Azua Jr., director for the OFCCP's Southwest and Rocky Mountain Region, in a statement.

"This settlement of $749,076 on behalf of 399 black applicants should put all federal contractors on notice that the Labor Department is serious about eliminating systemic discrimination," said the OFCCP Director, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor Charles E. James, Sr.

The OFCCP enforces Executive Order 11246 and other laws requiring federal contractors and sub-contractors to implement affirmative action programs and to guarantee equal employment opportunity in the workplace without regard to race, gender, disability, or veteran status. Georgia-Pacific is a provider of tissue products for resale to the Defense Commissary Agency. As a federal contractor, the company is subject to the equal employment opportunity and affirmative action laws enforced by the OFCCP. According to the agency, Georgia Pacific no longer uses the tests and was cooperative during the compliance review and subsequent conciliation.

For more information on this and other topics, consult CCH Employment Practices Guide or CCH Labor Relations.

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