Federal agency charges the company failed to rehire former employee because she had previously filed an EEOC discrimination lawsuit
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Synergy Entertainment Group, Inc., a Texas corporation that operates several movie theaters and entertainment venues across the United States, violated federal law by engaging in unlawful retaliation against a former employee, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.
The lawsuit alleges that the former employee applied to re-apply for employment at Synergy in 2023, but was told by a vice president that she was ineligible for re-employment because she had filed a discrimination lawsuit with the EEOC in 2022 after being fired from her bartending job.
Such conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which protects individuals from retaliation in the workplace. After attempting a pre-litigation settlement through a voluntary mediation process, the EEOC filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Synergy Entertainment Group, Inc., Civil Action No. 3:24-CV-00763).
The EEOC is seeking monetary relief for victims, including back wages, compensatory damages, and punitive damages. The EEOC is also seeking an injunction against the company to end the ongoing retaliatory conduct and prevent such unlawful conduct in the future.
“Employees have the right to be free from discrimination in the workplace,” said Charlotte District Attorney Melinda C. Dugas, “and employers may not tolerate such behavior or allow managers to retaliate against employees who report discrimination or engage in protected activity.”
For more information regarding retaliation, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/retaliation.
The EEOC’s Charlotte District is responsible for enforcing federal employment anti-discrimination laws in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia.
The EEOC prevents and remedies unlawful employment discrimination and provides equal opportunity for all. For more information, visit www.eeoc.gov.