A settlement agreement was recently announced between Mecklenburg County’s EMS agency and a former employee for $350,000. Of the settlement funds, $90,000 will go towards attorney fees, while the other $260,000 will go to the former MEDIC public relations manager who sued his agency over racial discrimination and retaliation.
A settlement agreement was recently announced between Mecklenburg County’s EMS agency and a former employee for $350,000. Of the settlement funds, $90,000 will go towards attorney fees, while the other $260,000 will go to the former MEDIC public relations manager who sued his agency over racial discrimination and retaliation.
The former employee was Tara Ragan. In her federal lawsuit she stated:
“Medic has an organizational culture that supports a consistent pattern of subjecting females and other minority employees to discrimination. Employees are treated disparately and less favorably in the terms and conditions of their employment based on race, color, sex, and national origin.”
Though Ragan couldn’t elaborate any more about her experiences due to a confidentiality agreement, her attorney said “she has talked with more than three MEDIC employees who’ve told her the same thing.” She added:
“What is consistently reported to me is that there is a culture there of racism, discrimination on basis of ethnicity and gender and huge concern with retaliation for anyone that stands up to them, particularly on those issues. I think they need to have some changes in management.”
But what all did Ragan allegedly endure? What kind of discrimination did she face? Well, according to the lawsuit, her original complaint detailed incidents dating back to 2014. Some of those incidents involved complaints that her superiors, “who are white men, treating minorities and women as less than them, questioning one employee’s weight and one manager telling a group of women he’s either sexist or racist.”
Additionally, the suit claimed that in April 2015, Ragan was placed on involuntary administrative leave and terminated the following month. MEDIC also responded to the allegations of racism and sexism by claiming they were “not based in reality” and denied every one of Ragan’s claims. Despite denying the allegations, MEDIC decided to settle the suit, though it did so “without admitting any liability.”
Shortly after the settlement was announced, MEDIC said it’s decision to settle the suit was agreed to in order to prevent pro-longed litigation and the costly expenses that would have accrued. The agency also released the following statement:
“The settlement in question was preceded by exhaustive investigations–including one by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission–and failed to find any evidence of a culture of discrimination or retaliation. We inform employees about culture and workplace expectations and ways to report any concern. Discrimination and retaliation are not tolerated.”
Since the statement was released, agency leaders have declined to comment any further.
Sources:
The Defenders: Medic settles discrimination lawsuit for $350,000
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