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A former Atlanta Hawks employee is claiming that a Black director created a culture at the organization that allowed for discrimination against white employees. Margo Kline sued the basketball organization on Friday after filing an employment discrimination charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
Kline worked in the corporate social responsibility department as a community development coordinator for five years, during that time she claims white employees, especially white women were discriminated against. She alleged that external affairs director David Lee would make “white culture” jokes, hire and promote Black employees over more qualified white employees.
White Women Sues Atlanta Hawks for Racial Discrimination Against White Employees
Kline allegedly reported her complaints but was ignored and ridiculed by the organization. The lawsuit further alleged that white employees were encouraged to stay away from Kline if they hoped to keep their job. Kline was eventually fired in March 2017 due to her conduct and performance issues. A charge she denies and instead claims that she tried in vain to seek ways to improve her performance.
In a statement to the AJC, the Hawks stated, “We take all claims of discrimination seriously and have performed a thorough review of these baseless claims. The case was quickly dismissed at the EEOC level. We deny these claims and will vigorously defend against them.”
