Staffing Agency Refused to Hire Qualified Female Applicants as Receiving Associates, Federal Agency Charges

INDIANAPOLIS – LTI Services, LLC, a staffing agency which serves the northern Indiana and Chicago areas, violated federal law by refusing to hire qualified female applicants as receiving associates because of their sex, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, LTI refused to hire women for a receiving associate position for one of its clients, Tire Rack. The EEOC said that women who had years of exper­ience were passed over for men who did not meet the experience or work-history requirements.

Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC filed suit (Case No. 3:20-cv-00304 in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, South Bend Division) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.

The agency is seeking back pay and compensatory and punitive damages against LTI as well as other relief, including a permanent injunction to prevent the company from engaging in future sex discrimination in the hiring process.

“Rejecting qualified female applicants based on their sex is unquestionably a violation of federal law,” said Michelle Eisele, district director for the EEOC’s Indianapolis District Office. “The EEOC is here to defend the victims of such unlawful practices.”

Kenneth L. Bird, Indianapolis District Office regional attorney, added, “Employers who use an applicant’s gender as the basis for their hiring decisions are clearly practicing unlawful discrimi­nation and are liable to investigation and litigation.”

The Indianapolis District Office of the EEOC oversees Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky, and parts of Ohio.

The EEOC advances opportunity in the workplace by enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov. Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.