Federal Investigation Found Transgender Construction Worker Faced Hostile Work Environment, Retaliation and Constructive Discharge

OAKLAND, Calif. – Fremont-based contractor Superior Automatic Sprinkler Company has agreed to provide monetary and injunctive relief to a construction worker following an investigation by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.

The worker, who is openly transgender and identifies as queer, filed a charge with EEOC alleging his supervisors and coworkers targeted him with verbal harassment and physical threats due to his gender identity and sexual orientation. He also alleged that he was transferred to new worksites in retaliation for reporting the harassment, and ultimately was constructively discharged because he did not feel safe enough to return to work. The EEOC’s investigation found evidence confirming the alleged harassment and that, despite the worker’s reports of harassment, Superior Automatic Sprinkler Company failed to act appropriately.

Such alleged conduct is a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination and harassment based on sex, including gender identity.

Following the investigation, the parties engaged in the pre-litigation conciliation process which resulted in a settlement that required Superior Automatic Sprinkler Company to pay monetary damages, revise its non-discrimination policies, conduct employee training, and provide additional training to managers and staff involved in the investigation of employee complaints of discrimination and harassment.

“We recognize Superior Automatic Sprinkler Company for taking these steps to ensure that harassment because of sex or gender identity is not tolerated in their worksites,” said Rosa Salazar, acting director of the EEOC’s Oakland Local Office. “As noted in EEOC’s 2023 report Building for the Future: Advancing Equal Employment Opportunity In the Construction Industry, ‘Harassment in construction is a workplace safety issue as well as a civil rights issue.’ We all want safer, more productive construction worksites—this benefits everyone on the team.”

For more information on harassment, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/harassment. For more information on discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/sexual-orientation-and-gender-identity-sogi-discrimination.

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