Mandatory arbitration agreements violate workers' rights, EEOC says.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), intending to send a message to employers that mandatory arbitration clauses violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, filed suit in February on behalf of a legal secretary who alleges he was fired for refusing to sign an arbitration agreement as a condition of employment.

The plaintiff in the case, Donald Lagatree, was hired by a San Diego law firm in September 1997 and fired three days later when he refused to sign an agreement that would have waived his rights to take work-related disputes to the EEOC and file suit in court against his employer. (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Luce, Forward, Hamilton & Scripps, No. 00-01322 (C.D. Cal. filed Feb. 7, 2000).)

The complaint filed against Luce, Forward, Hamilton & Scripps claims that the firm violated Title VII and that mandatory arbitration clauses impermissibly waive rights under federal laws, including the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Equal Pay Act, and the Americans with Disabilities Act.

"The corporate supporters of mandatory arbitration like to say it is voluntary, but there is nothing voluntary about telling employees that they will be fired unless they agree to waive their constitutional rights to a day in court and trial by jury," said Paul Bland, staff attorney at Trial Lawyers for Public Justice in Washington, D.C., and chair of ATLA's Mandatory Arbitration Litigation Group. "This kind of abuse is all too common, and I think it is just terrific that the EEOC is fighting for Mr. Lagatree's rights."

According to the EEOC complaint, Lagatree's termination deprived him of equal employment opportunities and caused him to suffer emotional distress. The commission said that the law firm "acted with malice and reckless indifference to ... [Lagatree's] federally protected rights." The suit seeks compensation for back wages and benefits, emotional distress, humiliation, loss of enjoyment of life, and punitive damages, as well as an injunction against the law firm's practice of requiring would-be employees to agree to arbitration.

The suit, the first of its kind filed by the Los Angeles District Office of the EEOC, joins others that the commission has filed in other jurisdictions.