Wet Seal settles bias suit with minority plaintiffs

Melanie Eversley, USA TODAY | USATODAY

The Wet Seal clothing retailer has reached a $7.5 million settlement with minority plaintiffs who charged that the company directed managers to fire African-American employees who they thought did not fit the company's brand image.

Lawyers with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said managers openly said they wanted workers who had the "Armani look, were white, had blue eyes (and were) thin and blond."

The company will pay at least $5.58 million into a fund for 1,600 current and past managers for lost pay and promotion, termination and emotional distress, according to lead plaintiffs attorney ReNika Moore of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. The civil rights organization represented plaintiffs in the case.

Terms of the settlement include requiring the company to post open positions and establish new criteria for hiring. The company will add regional human resource directors to its staff and include diversity in employee training.

"We are pleased to put this matter behind us as we continue to be committed to non-discriminatory employment practices that create a welcome environment for people of all backgrounds," said John Goodman, who became CEO in January.

"With this settlement Wet Seal is attempting to right its wrongs," NAACP LDF President Sherrilyn Ifill said in a written statement. "No one should have the cards stacked against them on their job simply because of their race."

Nicole Cogdell, a store manager who was fired, was the lead plaintiff in the case.

"Being targeted for termination from a job I loved because of my race was a nightmare," Cogdell said in a statement released by the NAACP. "Wet Seal has now committed to strong, fair policies because we took a stand."

Wet Seal, which has 7,000 employees, also owns Arden B. stores.