My husband has worked at the same construction company (privately owned) for the last 8 years. He has usually gotten laid off during the colder months and called back usually in March/April. A few years he even worked through the milder winters. Today, he got laid off after being out of work since the January 2006. Prior to going back, he called every week checking to see when he would be returning to work. They called him to return to work on October 16. He worked until December 15 (today). The weather has been very good and the company has work. At the beginning of this week (December 11th), six new brick layers were brought in from another work site that was almost completed. When these 6 transplants arrived, 6 workers that were called back in October were released. The 6 transplants are white; the 6 laid off are African American. They were told 20 minutes prior to the end of the work day that were laid off. And, the 6 laid off workers has more work experience and time in with the company. In addition, apprentice brick layers were kept on the job while the more seasoned and experience workers were laid off. In addition, workers that are relatives of Supervisors were also favored with a job.

Nepotism and discrimination???? My husband has an excellent attendance and work record with this company and has weathered the storm during many lay offs. With the influx of new work that company has, justification for the layoffs does not make any logical business sense.

Help, please. Tis the season!

On the basis of a one-paragraph post, I can't give you a hard and fast guarantee that this is illegal discrimination. But I agree that the facts as you have presented them certainly justify his giving the EEOC a call.

Thanks for the response. It is of great comfort to have received your advice. I have been reviewing my husband's employee handbook and it seems there is a procedure for employees with grievances. I have also been contemplating, of course, putting the grievance in writing and sending it to the company. In the handbook there is also a form that must be filled out and submitted to the company after a meeting with the supervisor in charge of site to discuss grievance. The only problem is that when he laid my husband off, he apparently became the "invisible" one and could not be located to discuss the lay off which is step one of the company's process for a grievance. Go to step 2 and put grievance in writing and send to company in which they have 10 days to respond.

Should we grieve to the EEOC before their 10 days expire? Is there a time frame as to how long after the lay off can we grieve?

Again, thanks for your response and I awaiting your reply.

YOU should not be doing any of this; your husband should.

Not having read his CBA, I can't advise him as to the timing of the grievance. But he has 180 days to file with the EEOC.