Broward School District employee wins lawsuit

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Carpenter awarded $210,000 in Broward schools bias case

November 15, 2009

A federal jury has

awarded $210,000 to a journeyman carpenter with the Broward school

district who sued, claiming racial discrimination and violations of the

Americans with Disabilities Act.

Dennis Brown sued the School

Board in 2008, alleging his supervisors in the district's Physical

Plant Operations department discriminated against him because he was

black, giving better assignments to his white counterparts. Brown also

said his supervisors were retaliating against him for making complaints

about discrimination.

Those supervisors also refused to make

accommodations for Brown's irreversible allergic asthma, a condition

that means he couldn't work in areas contaminated by mold or other

airborne pollutants, his lawsuit stated.

Brown's attorney,

Trent, said his client was " absolutely ecstatic " with the

ruling last week. " He has fought this battle for so long, " Trent said.

" … He really has been through it with these guys, and nobody listened.

He filed complaint after complaint. "

It was unclear whether the

district plans to appeal the ruling. A district spokeswoman said on

Friday that the attorneys were out of the office and unavailable to

comment.

It is not the first time a federal jury has awarded

a large amount to a district employee for discrimination or harassment.

In 2006, a jury ordered the school district to pay $500,000 to a

custodian who was sexually harassed on the job. And in 1999, the

district agreed to pay $100,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by a teacher

who said she was sexually harassed by her school's principal.

The school district is the county's largest employer, with more than 31,000

employees.

Brown,

52, filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Opportunity Commission in

2007, after he was assigned to work on portables at Boyd High

School in Lauderdale Lakes. The crew mostly worked in areas where there

was mold, mildew and dust, which Brown said interfered with his medical

condition.

" I submitted doctor's notes years ago, explaining why

I can't be exposed to dust, mold and mildew, " Brown wrote in his

complaint. " However, I am still assigned to the portable crew. I am the

only black carpenter subjected to this type of treatment. "

Brown is still employed with the school district.

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