T-Mobile, Black Employee Headed for Trial Over Layoff, Bonus Cut

T-Mobile USA Inc. must face a trial on whether it reduced a Black product owner’s bonus and included her in a workforce reduction because of her race, a Seattle federal judge ruled.

Sandra Russell’s evidence supports an inference of discrimination because she and the only other Black employee working under her manager in 2022 each had their bonuses cut to 80%, the US District Court for the Western District of Washington said. And multiple employees had voiced concerns about that manager and two others who’d previously supervised Russell regarding their mistreatment of non-White workers, the court said.

A jury could ...