Cargill Facing Class Action Discrimination Suit

MINNEAPOLIS--Cargill Inc. (www.cargill.com) is denying allegations made in a class action lawsuit filed Nov. 15 that the company systematically discriminated against its black employees. The lawsuit, filed by Sprenger & Lang on behalf of 25 current and former black Cargill employees, alleges that Cargill systematically discriminated against all of its black salaried employees in advancement, compensation and termination.

"Cargill does not have systems that discriminate, we don't have policies that discriminate and we don't have a culture that discriminates," Robert Lumpkins, Cargill's vice chairman, said in a written statement issued by the company. "These cases reflect a wide variety of circumstances and show no discrimination."

Cargill has faced similar allegations in the past, settling for $1.2 million a 1984 class-action discrimination suit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on behalf of four blacks who worked at the company. The company did not admit wrong in the case, but did operate for five years under a consent decree setting goals for hiring and promoting women and blacks. Nancy Siska, Cargill's corporate vice president of human resources, stated that statements made by the plaintiffs regarding the EEOC settlement are "distorted." "The case was not a contested, litigated matter," she said. "Rather, it involved a voluntary settlement, which Cargill embraced. Cargill did not stop with the actions of the Foster settlement, but instead is committed to continuing improvement for all its employees."

Lawrence Schaefer, lead counsel for the plaintiffs and a partner at Sprenger & Lang, was involved in the 1984 case. "The first case was mostly about getting these employees a foot in the door at Cargill," Schaefer said. "This case is about getting a seat at the table and ensuring that real changes endure." The suit, Arnold et al. v. Cargill Inc., was filed in the U.S. Federal Court for the District of Minnesota. Sprenger & Lang established a Web site with information about the case at www.cargillcase.com.