Court Rejects Settlement in 53-Year-Long Union Worker Bias Suit

A proposed settlement between New York labor unions and the US aiming to wind down a 53-year racial bias lawsuit was denied Wednesday after a district court ruled the agreement would disserve public interest.

Because the unions have fallen short of their obligations to reduce bias towards Black and Hispanic workers, the parties’ proposed consent decree must be rejected, Judge Lewis A. Kaplan of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York said in his memorandum opinion. The proposed agreement sought to decrease the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s oversight and create an off-ramp to end the ...