Sikorsky Aircraft sued for racially discriminatory employment policies and practices.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 23, 1997--Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation is widely considered to be the world leader in the design and manufacture of advanced helicopters for commercial, industrial and military use.

Sikorsky, a wholly owned subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation maintains its corporate headquarters in Stratford, Conn. Sikorsky employs approximately 9,000 employees in various facilities in Connecticut, as well as in West Palm Beach, Fla., and Troy, Ala.

This class action is brought against Sikorsky by seven African-American employees, on behalf of themselves and others, who are victims of racially discriminatory employment policies and practices. The vast majority of African-Americans employed at Sikorsky hold positions that are clustered at the lower labor grade levels and, throughout Sikorsky's entire history, virtually no African-Americans have ever attained positions that entail supervisory or managerial responsibilities.

At Sikorsky, the "glass ceiling" exists at or around labor grade 45, and almost no African-Americans advance past this grade. Supervisory positions generally fall within labor grades 49 through 51, and managers typically are at labor grades 52 and above. As of April 1995, out of a total of approximately 4,000 employees who held salaried positions that were at labor grade 41 and above, fewer than 90, or about 2.2 percent were African-Americans. Out of a total of 932 employees who held positions at Sikorsky at labor grade level 49 and above, only eight -- or less than one percent -- were African-Americans. These statistics reveal that the disparity between African-American and Caucasian employees at Sikorsky is so great that it cannot be attributed to "chance."

The racially discriminatory systems challenged by this law suit are designed, implemented and administered by a nearly all-Caucasian group of supervisors and managers. It is routine at Sikorsky to have African-American employees train Caucasian employees, who are then promoted to positions in which they supervise the African-Americans who trained them. Even senior human resources personnel at United Technologies Corporation, Sikorsky's parent company, have explicitly acknowledged that Sikorksy had a dismal record with respect to promotion, compensation and employment of African-Americans. At a diversity seminar in April 1997, UTC's Director of Workforce Diversity told the diversity managers at Sikorsky that Sikorsky had a "serious racial problem."

In addition, Sikorsky fails to maintain a salary pay scale based on objective, job-related criteria that are uniformly applied to African-American employees and Caucasian employees. Sikorsky designates lower salaries, raises and other forms of compensation to African-American employees than to Caucasian employees who hold the same or similar job positions, or who hold job positions which entail similar or comparable responsibilities and duties. Sikorsky also regularly pays African-Americans a salary that is below the minimum of the particular labor grade.

The parties to this action are current Sikorsky employees, with work histories at Sikorsky ranging from four years to 41 years. Two of the parties to this action are highly decorated war veterans. One is the recipient of numerous medals and honors, including the Bronze Star, the Silver Star and three Purple Hearts. All are either college graduates or highly trained specialists in their respective fields. Plaintiffs seek declaratory and injunctive relief and monetary damages to redress the deprivation of their rights under the Civil Rights Act of 1871, Section 1981, as amended.

For information about the allegations and complaint please call Daniel L. Berger, Esq., at 212/554-1400 of Ava Thorin at 212/554-1429.

CONTACT: Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann LLP 

Daniel L. Berger, Esq., 212/554-1400

or

Ava Thorin, 212/554-1429