Craig Ogans (center) said he and a fellow worker were let go as retaliation for reporting the racial harassment. (Photo by Jana Asenbrennerova / Special to The Chronicle)
Three Black American men have filed right-to-sue complaints against their former employer after they say they were subjected to constant racial harassment while working at a high-rise construction site in San Francisco.
In a complaint filed last week Thursday, elevator operators Don’ta Laury, Craig Ogans and Douglas Russell claim they experienced racist graffiti scribbled on the walls and Black dolls hanging by nooses in the bathroom, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. All three leveled complaints against Clark Construction with the California Department of Fair Employment, lawyer John Burris said.
A spokesman for Clark Construction acknowledged that the inappropriate incidents did happen, but insisted the company quickly addressed all claims of harassment and racial discrimination.
During their time working on a 43-story tower in San Francisco’s South Financial District, Laury, Ogans and Russell reported seeing racial epithets scrawled on the bathroom walls, reading, “kill n-words” and “stinky smelly n-words.” Some even targeted the men directly.
Ogans recalled an April 26 incident where he and Russell were allegedly subjected to Black dolls hung from nooses in the bathroom. The little dolls included the words “Kill N— Craig” and “Kill N— Dougie,” according to Ogans.
“I got really, really fearful that, you know, I’m working in a hostile environment,” he told reporters last week at Burris’ law office. “I started to fear for my safety.”
The men’s right-to-sue complaint is only the prerequisite to a forthcoming discrimination suit Burris said he hopes to file soon. He said the lawsuit will not only seek damages but will send a message that such discrimination won’t be tolerated.
“It is inconceivable to me and to us that the leadership at Clark Construction was unaware of this activity,” said Burris. “But at the very least they could have wiped it off the walls on a daily basis.”
According to the Chronicle, all three were employees of Bigge Crane, a subcontractor to Clark. It’s unclear if Crane will be named in their lawsuit, however. Laury is still employed at the high-rise site, but Ogans and Russell claim they were fired in retaliation for coming forward with their complaints.
A representative for Clark Construction insisted the company does not condone racist or discriminatory behavior. It has reportedly since implemented anti-harassment training and will team up with the NAACP of San Francisco to provide cultural sensitivity training, the newspaper reported.
” … When Clark was made aware of incidents on the 250 Howard Street job site, we swiftly notified law enforcement and have cooperated with both Bigge Crane and law enforcement in their investigation,” the spokesman said in a statement. “Additionally, we took further steps to ensure that the hundreds of individuals who work on the 250 Howard Street job were made aware that harassment is not and will not be tolerated.”
