Company Steered Black Applicants Into Lower-Paying Positions and Paid Black Applicants a Lower Wage at Hire, Federal Agency Charges

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Texar Line Clearance, LLC violated federal civil rights law when it steered Black applicants into lower-paying positions than non-Black applicants and hired Black applicants at lower wage rates than non-Black applicants, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

According to the EEOC’s suit, beginning in at least 2019, Texar preferred non-Black applicants over African American applicants in the hiring process. Further, Texar regularly steered the non-Black applicants into higher-paying positions over more qualified African Americans, who often had more experience than non-Black job seekers. Further, the wage rate for Texar’s operator positions is significantly higher than its laborer position. Texar regularly paid new Black hires a lower starting wage than new non-Black hires in the same job.

Race discrimination violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas, Texarkana Division, Civil Action No. 4:21-cv-04061, after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. The agency seeks monetary relief for a class of Black employees, as well as an injunction against future discrimination.

“Employers may not steer certain groups into particular jobs because it seeks to pay them less than other groups. Title VII prohibits discriminatory preference for any group in job placement and pay,” said Edmond Sims, acting district director of the EEOC’s Memphis District Office, which has jurisdiction over Arkansas, Tennessee and portions of Mississippi.

Headquartered in Texarkana, Arkansas, Texar is an excavation, vegetation management and site preparation company and provides right-of-way services for utility companies. Texar assigns workers to locations in Arkansas, Texas, and Oklahoma.

The EEOC advances opportunity in the workplace by enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov.