Amended Scheduling Order Entered

The EEOC Administrative Judge has issued an amended Scheduling Order for the case. The Order sets out the schedule for the discovery of expert information.

Amended Scheduling Order

June 2007 Status Update - Order

The Agency had sought production of the class members' questionnaire responses. On June 27, 2007, the EEOC Administrative Judge issued an Order holding that Class Counsel did not have to produce the questionnaire responses to the Agency.

Order Regarding Questionnaire Responses

March 2007 Status Update

On March 9, 2007, we received additional discovery information from the Agency. We also provided the Agency with supplementary discovery responses on March 9, 2007. The Agency has promised to provide us with additional electronic data. Once this data has been received, we will conduct a conference call with the Agency’s IT designee to further explore the data. Our next status conference call with Judge Schreffler is on April 13, 2007. Discovery is continuing.

Discovery Order Issued

The EEOC Administrative Judge issued an Order requiring the Agency to produce additional records that were sought by the class. Discovery in the case is ongoing.

EEOC Discovery Order

On October 5, 2005, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission certified the class of all African American employees, past and present, who have worked at the Department of Veterans Affairs McGuire facility in Richmond, Virginia at any time from 1996 to the present and have been discriminated against with respect to the Agency’s policies and practices in the selection of and distribution of monetary and non-monetary awards, including but not limited to special contribution awards, on-the-spot and time-off awards, quality step increases, gain-sharing awards, honor awards, and other monetary and non-monetary awards. The law firm of Kator, Parks & Weiser has been approved to serve as Class Counsel in the case.

Class Counsel will now have the opportunity to conduct discovery in the case. Over the next months, we will be gathering information regarding the case.

If you believe that: (1) you are a class member according to the above definition, and (2) you currently have a pending EEO complaint in the informal or formal stage, and pending before either the VA or the EEOC, please contact Class Counsel immediately so that we can take action to preserve your rights as a class member.

On November 21, 2005, Class Counsel met with a number of class members at the Richmond facility. The meeting was an opportunity for class members to meet with Class Counsel and ask questions regarding the case. Class Counsel also encouraged all class members to contact us with anecdotes regarding discriminatory actions against African American employees at the Richmond facility.

On December 5, 2005, the Agency filed a motion to “redefine” the class, for reconsideration of certain matters already rejected by the Administrative Judge, and to halt discovery. Because Class Counsel believed that all of the matters raised by the Agency had already been decided in favor of the class during the parties’ last status call with the Judge, we wrote to the Administrative Judge on December 8, 2005, stating, “[b]ecause the Agency’s motion appears to address issues that were thoroughly discussed and wholly decided during our last status conference call, it seems unnecessary for the Class to respond to the motion.” The Class’s formal response to the motion would have been due on December 27, 2005. However, on December 21, 2005, in a nine-page decision, the Judge denied the Agency’s motion in its entirety. Apparently, the Administrative Judge agreed that it was unnecessary for the class to respond to the Agency’s motion. The Judge stated that the Agency’s motion, at least in part, was “merely a rehashing” of already-rejected arguments made by the Agency to the EEOC. As such, the Class definition remains unchanged, and the Agency failed in its bid to halt the Class from engaging in discovery.

We will periodically update this webpage to keep the Class informed regarding the case.

EEOC Order Certifying Class

EEOC November 2005 Status Conference Order

EEOC Scheduling Order

EEOC Order, December 21, 2005

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