Madison RV Center Inc. in Huntsville will pay $65,000 to settle a racial discrimination and retaliation lawsuit, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said today.
The company, which sells and services recreational vehicles, also signed a 34-month consent decree that requires it to implement and post notices of its anti-discrimination policies, train employees and managers, and thoroughly investigate and address complaints, the EEOC’s Birmingham office said.
The EEOC suit contended that Madison RV subjected Karl T. Humphrey to racist comments and graffiti by white workers and managers over 12 months. EEOC said the company terminated Humphrey after he documented the acts and his complaints in writing.
“Companies accused of racial harassment are only getting themselves into deeper trouble when they punish the victim rather than solve the problem,” EEOC attorney C. Emanuel Smith said.
John Wilmer of Wilmer & Lee PA, Madison RV’s attorney, said the company believed the lawsuit was frivolous but settled because of economic reasons. The company took measures to protect Humphrey, “a pretty good employee,” but he “chose to leave the company,” Wilmer said.Â
