Boss Watch: 9/26 – 10/3

Jacob Morrison

Illegal activities of Southern Bosses for the weeks between Friday, September 26, and Friday, October 3

Georgia Killers

The U.S. Department of Labor has cited a Florida painting contractor for willfully exposing workers to fall and drowning hazards.

Investigators with the department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration determined that on April 7, 2025, Seminole Equipment Inc. bridge painters were removing scaffolding from the southbound I-95 bridge on the Ogeechee River when one worker fell into the river and drowned. The agency concluded that the Tarpon Springs, Florida-based employer failed to ensure employees used fall protection and life jackets while working on the bridge section.

“A critical piece of our mission to put American workers first is ensuring they are safe and protected on the job,” said Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer. “No American should go into work fearing they might not make it home at the end of the day. OSHA is taking concrete enforcement action to stop preventable tragedies.”

“The Department of Labor is committed to protecting our nation’s workforce by holding bad actors accountable,” said Deputy Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling. “We will continue addressing careless practices when we see them to achieve our shared goal of safe and productive workplaces for all Americans.”

OSHA cited Seminole Equipment Inc. for five willful and three serious violations and proposed $877,220 in penalties. 

The agency also issued two serious violations to The L.C. Whitford Co. Inc., the controlling employer for the site, and proposed a penalty of $26,480.

Alabama Discriminators

WorkSmart Staffing, LLC, a regional staffing agency in the southeastern United States headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina, violated federal law by discriminating against a class of females when it failed to hire or refer them to available positions, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit announced today.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, from Aug. 1, 2020 to Aug. 8, 2023, WorkSmart failed to hire or refer a class of aggrieved females for laborer positions because of their sex at two of the company’s offices, in Hoover, and Leeds, Alabama. The EEOC’s complaint charged that one of WorkSmart’s clients requested male laborers only for their facility, and that WorkSmart complied with the client’s discriminatory request.

“Federal law protects applicants and employees from discrimination based on sex in hiring and job assignments, and the EEOC is committed to enforcing and remedying unlawful sex discrimination,” said EEOC Birmingham District Director Bradley Anderson.

Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination because of an individual’s sex. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. WorkSmart Staffing, LLC, Civil Action No. 4:25-cv-01659-SGC) in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Middle Division, after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement via its conciliation process. The EEOC is seeking back pay, front pay, compensatory damages and punitive damages for the affected females, as well as injunctive relief to prevent future discrimination.

Marsha Rucker, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Birmingham District Office, said, “Unfortunately, some companies engage in sex-based hiring practices that have no place in today’s workforce. The EEOC remains vigilant to prevent sex-based hiring practices across all sectors of employment .”

Louisiana Discriminators

Coca-Cola Bottling Company United, Inc. (CCBCU), the third-largest bottler and distributor of Coca-Cola products in the United States and headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, violated federal law by failing to accommodate an employee with a disability and then firing him because of his disability, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit announced today.

According to the suit, the employee, who worked as a delivery driver for CCBCU in Lafayette, Louisiana, was diagnosed with renal disease requiring dialysis. After he asked for a change in his work schedule to accommodate his dialysis, CCBCU determined he could not work a different schedule as an accommodation and told the employee to apply and compete for other jobs in the company aligned with his medical restrictions. The employee identified and applied for a job with a schedule allowing him to continue dialysis while working full time. However, even though he was qualified for the position, CCBCU refused to place him into the position, and then terminated him in August 2022.

“Employers must provide employees with disabilities reasonable accommodations, absent undue hardship,” said Michel Kirkland, director of the EEOC’s New Orleans Field Office. “The EEOC will diligently investigate, and, if necessary, file suit against employers that violate the rights of their employees.”

Such alleged conduct violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which prohibits disability discrimination in employment. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. Coca-Cola Bottling Company United, Case No. 2:25-cv-02032) in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process.

Elizabeth Owen, a senior trial attorney in the EEOC’s New Orleans Field Office, said, “It is critical for employers to understand that they have an affirmative legal obligation to make reasonable changes to an employee’s work environment to accommodate an employee’s disability. When an employee can no longer perform the essential duties of his current job, reassignment to a vacant position may be a reasonable accommodation under the ADA.”

Union Busters

Brought to you by LaborLab: The nation’s leading watchdog standing with working families to stop employer coercion and intimidation. Visit www.laborlab.us for more info.

Here are the new filings from this week:

As a reminder, due to a lack of enforcement, some labor relations consultants may disregard the law and fail to report their activities to the U.S. Department of Labor. Therefore, it’s crucial for organizers and workers to report suspected “persuader” activity to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS). You can reach them via email at  OLMS-Public@dol.gov, by calling (202) 693-0123, or by contacting your nearest OLMS District Office.

For assistance, please contact LaborLab at contact@laborlab.us.