By Jonathan Stempel
(Reuters) – Equal employment in the US Opportunity (SO:) The commission sued two major automakers on Friday, accusing General Motors (NYSE: ) and the United Auto Workers of age discrimination, and the Stellantis (NYSE: ) unit that includes Chrysler of subjecting female employees to sexual harassment.
GM and the UAW are accused of maintaining a sickness and accident benefits policy under their collective bargaining agreement that reduces payments to older employees receiving welfare benefits as of October 2019.
The EEOC said the policy, which covers at least 50 GM plants nationwide, discriminates against employees age 66 and older, in violation of the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act.
Stellantis’ FCA U.S. unit, meanwhile, has been accused of tolerating widespread sexual harassment of female employees at a Detroit assembly plant since December 2020 and routinely ignoring their complaints about male supervisors and co-workers, some of whom were placed in leadership roles.
The EEOC said the alleged harassment included inappropriate touching and sexually charged comments, and coupled with the FCA’s failure to discipline male harassers, created a hostile work environment that violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
GM had no immediate comment because it has yet to consider its appeal. FCA and the UAW did not immediately respond to requests for comment on their cases.
The lawsuit by GM and the UAW seeks to recover benefits that workers age 66 and older deserved but never received, while the FCA lawsuit seeks compensatory and punitive damages for female employees at the Detroit plant.
Both lawsuits also seek permanent injunctions against further wrongful conduct.
GM and the UAW were sued in federal court in New Albany, Indiana, while FCA was sued in federal court in Detroit.
The lawsuits are part of a series of enforcement actions by several federal agencies in the final days of the Biden administration.
It is unclear how the EEOC’s enforcement priorities will change once President-elect Donald Trump enters the White House.
