On The Border To Pay $100,000 To Settle Race Harassment Case

On The Border, a Tex-Mex chain with two restaurants on Long Island, will pay $100,000 to settle a race harassment lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

According to EEOC’s lawsuit, OTB failed to take action when several employees at its Holtsville location subjected an African-American cook to harassment based on his race, including repeatedly calling him racial slurs.

Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race, including subjecting employees to a racially hostile work environment.

“The EEOC takes seriously its responsibility to enforce federal law and hold employers to account. We appreciate OTB’s recognition of that responsibility and its willingness to resolve this case, avoiding a protracted litigation,” EEOC trial attorney Renay Oliver said.

In addition to the $100,000 in monetary relief and a letter of apology to the victim, a 3-year consent decree resolving the suit requires OTB to provide anti-discrimination and harassment training to employees located at its Holtsville and Hicksville locations and the supervisors responsible for those locations.

OTB, which has more than 150 locations in the United States, will also redistribute to those employees its EEO policies with a letter from its chief people officer affirming the company’s commitment to provide a workplace free from discrimination. The consent decree also requires OTB to report to EEOC future complaints of race discrimination and harassment by its New York employees. The EEOC will monitor OTB’s compliance with these obligations for the next three years.

“Unfortunately, racial harassment is all too common in the restaurant industry," Jeffrey Burstein, regional attorney for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, said. "Whatever the environment, employers need to take seriously their obligations under federal law and put a stop to harassment as soon as they become aware of it.”