Ford Pays $10 Million to Settle Harassment Probe in Chicago

Ford Motor Co. has agreed to pay $10 million to settle an array of claims of sexual and racial harassment by workers at two of its Chicago-area assembly and stamping plants.

An investigation by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission found reasonable cause that employees of the two facilities violated the civil rights of women and African-American workers. The commission says managers retaliated against employees who complained about discrimination and harassment.

Ford agreed to the settlement without admitting liability to “avoid an extended dispute.” Neither Ford nor the EEOC has offered details about the complaints or the settlement. The Detroit Free Press says payments from the settlement will go to women and African-American men who began working at the facilities sometime after the beginning of 2010.

This isn’t the first time the Chicago assembly plant has been involved in discrimination claims. In 2000 Ford agreed to pay nearly $20 million to settle a lawsuit involving similar complaints at the factory.

In 2015 Ford removed several senior managers at the assembly facility after a federal probe uncovered evidence of widespread sexual harassment and racial discrimination there. Reports at the time said the case had expanded from four plaintiffs to 33 by the time the firings occurred.