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Case of the Month December 2025

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission asserted that a plastic fabrication company employee racially harassed another worker and the worker's employment was terminated after he opposed and/or complained about the harassment

EEOC v. Lakeside Plastics Inc.

Case Type:
Labor & Employment - Discrimination
Labor & Employment - Race/National Origin
Labor & Employment - Termination/Constructive Discharge
Labor & Employment - Retaliation

Specific Liability:
Racial Harassment and Retaliation

General Injury:
Monetary Damages

Jurisdiction:
State: Wisconsin
United States District Court, E.D. Wisconsin.

Related Court Documents:
Plaintiff's complaint: 2022 WL 22910549
Defendant's memorandum of law in support of motion for summary judgment: 2024 WL 5416437
Plaintiff's memorandum of law in opposition to defendant's motion for summary judgment: 2024 WL 5416433
Consent decree 2025 WL 554457

Case Name:
EEOC v. Lakeside Plastics Inc.

Docket/File Number:
1:22CV01149

Result Amount:
$60,000

Result Date:
January 24, 2025

Judge:
William C. Griesbach

Attorneys:
Plaintiff: Gregory M. Gochanour, Regional Attorney - EEOC, Chicago, IL; Ethan Cohen, Assistant Regional Attorney - EEOC, Chicago, IL; Tina Burnside, Senior Trial Attorney - EEOC, Minneapolis, MN; Greger Calhan, Trial Attorney - EEOC, Minneapolis, MN
Defendant: Tony J. Renning, Renning, Lewis & Lacy SC, Oshkosh, WI; Jenna E. Rousseau, Renning, Lewis & Lacy SC, Green Bay, WI; LaKeisha D. Haase, Renning, Lewis & Lacy SC, Oshkosh, WI

Result Type:
Settlement

Experts:
Plaintiff: Not Reported
Defendant: Not Reported

Breakdown of Award:
$60,000 to plaintiff for damages

Summary of Facts:
Brian Turner, an African American male, was reportedly employed with defendant Lakeside Plastics Inc., a plastic fabrication company that manufactured traffic safety products, screen printing inks and custom plastisol formulations. Turner said that he was subjected to a hostile work environment when he was racially harassed by a Caucasian co-worker who used racial slurs and who directed derogatory racial comments against him. Turner said that his co-worker also threatened him with physical violence and threatened to cause Turner's employment to be terminated.

Turner said that he objected to his co-worker's alleged racial harassment and reported the harassment to Lakeside Plastics' supervisory and/or lead employees; moreover, Turner said that the staffing firm which had assigned him to worked at the defendant's facility also reported the harassment to the defendant. However, the defendant's supervisors and/or managers allegedly failed to take prompt and/or effective remedial measures to stop the harassment.

Turner said that without investigating his complaints, his employment was subsequently terminated in response to his opposing the racial harassment. Turner also contended that Lakeside Plastics treated Caucasian employees more favorably than him, claiming that when a Caucasian employee complained about a co-worker, the defendant conducted an investigation and ultimately terminated the co-worker's employment, rather than terminating the Caucasian employee's employment.

The EEOC filed a complaint against Lakeside Plastics, asserting that the defendant had engaged in unlawful employment practices in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C.A. Section 2000e et seq., and Title I of the Civil Rights Act of 1991, 42 U.S.C.A. Section 1981a due to its subjecting Turner to a racially hostile work environment and terminating his employment because of his race and/or in retaliation for his opposing the racial harassment.

The defendant denied liability; however, the parties agreed to resolve the dispute by way of a consent decree, which stated that Lakeside Plastics would pay the sum of $60,000 to Turner. The consent decree also enjoined the defendant and its officers, managers, agents and/or supervisory employees from engaging in racial harassment and/or discrimination and from retaliating against any person who opposed any unlawful practice under Title VII. The consent decree further provided that the defendant would provide Turner with a neutral employment reference and would offer to rehire Turner.

In addition, the consent decree required that the defendant provide training to management personnel regarding Title VII's provisions that prohibit discrimination and retaliation, and provide training to non-management employees and/or temporary workers regarding their rights to be free from discrimination, racial harassment and/or retaliation under Title VII. The consent decree further required the defendant to revise its policies and procedures to prevent racial discrimination and harassment, as well as retaliation, as prohibited under Title VII.

United States District Court, E.D. Wisconsin.

Westlaw Citation:
2025 WL 1380159