Race, sex bias and retaliation suit against GM reinstated

A federal appeals court on Thursday overturned a lower court and reinstated a lawsuit against General Motors LLC in which an employee charged the company subjected her to a hostile work environment, race and sex discrimination and retaliation at its Lockport, New York, plant.

Billie R. Banks, who started work as a security officer at General Motors’ Lockport plant in 1985, was promoted twice, most recently to the position of site safety supervisor in 2006, according to the ruling by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York in Billie R. Banks v. General Motors LLC, et al.

She held that position until she was replaced in 2014 while on medical leave. After returning to work in October 2014, she took another leave in January 2016 and remains on medical leave, according to the ruling. Both leaves were for recuperation from the stress, anxiety and depression she incurred from working at the plant, according to the ruling. 

In her lawsuit, which was filed in U.S. District Court in Buffalo, Ms. Banks alleged she was subjected to a series of racially or sexually offensive incidents at the Lockport plant, including being accused of disability and credit fraud, and was the target of racial epithets and sexually offensive comments. 

Among other incidents, while she was on disability leave, General Motors replaced her as a safety supervisor without her knowledge, and when she returned to work, she was reassigned to a role where she no longer had supervisory responsibilities and was assigned menial tasks.

Other employees at the plant were also allegedly subjected to sexual or racially offensive conduct, according to the ruling. The district court dismissed her case, which was reinstated by a three-judge appeals court panel, in a 76-page ruling.

“We conclude that there is ample evidence of racial and sexual harassment to create genuine issues of material fact as to Banks’ hostile work environment claim,” the ruling said.

Despite the district court’s dismissal of it, Ms. Banks “provides extensive and detailed examples of pervasive and long-term sex and race-based animosity that a reasonable jury could find created a hostile work environment,” said the ruling, in also reinstating her race and sex discrimination and retaliation claims.

Attorneys in the case did not respond to requests for comment.