\n<\/p>\n
Planned Parenthood\u2019s Illinois chapter has agreed to pay $500,000 after the federal government investigated allegations that the branch discriminated against its white employees. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) said there is reasonable cause to believe the organization segregated its employees by race into \u201caffinity networks.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Many firms have \u201caffinity networks,\u201d which allow employees to join employee groups with those to whom they feel similar. However, at other companies, these networks are voluntary, not mandatory. Planned Parenthood had mandatory \u201caffinity caucuses\u201d segregated by race, and employees of other races were not allowed to participate.<\/span><\/p>\n Every week, staff were required to attend one- to two-hour sessions of segregated racial affinity caucuses or DEI training. At DEI training sessions, white employees were reportedly the target of harassment and derogatory statements such as: they \u201care white and do not feel racism the same way that non-white patients feel\u201d and \u201cwhite supremacy is exerted at every level of oppression.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas said, \u201cSegregating employees by race violates the core promise of our nation\u2019s civil rights laws.\u201d Lucas added in her statement that Title VII guarantees equal treatment for every employee and \u201cthose protections equally apply to white workers.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Planned Parenthood employees alleged that the company even restricted the benefits of white employees. \u201cPlanned Parenthood also denied white employees access to time off that it granted only to black employees,\u201d the report read. Along with the $500,000 settlement, Planned Parenthood fired the manager responsible for the misconduct that the investigation uncovered. The EEOC says the investigation was prompted after multiple employees brought forward their concerns.<\/span><\/p>\n