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Johns Hopkins physics lab settles racial discrimination charges

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Johns Hopkins University's Applied Physics Laboratory will pay $359,252 to settle discrimination charges made by two African-American women who worked at its Laurel, Maryland, facility, the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs said Thursday.

The OFCCP's investigation began in June 2010 when an African-American woman filed a complaint charging she had been subjected to a hostile work environment at the laboratory and that she was harassed, retaliated against and ultimately fired when she complained, the agency said in a statement.

Then in November 2010, another African-American woman who eventually resigned charged that she had been subjected to pay discrimination and a hostile work environment at the lab,

OFCCP investigators confirmed she was paid less than similarly situated male colleagues and that the laboratory had subjected both women to a hostile work environment by retaliating against them for filing complaints and by allowing them to be harassed.

In addition to paying the settlement, the laboratory has agreed to revise its policies and procedures to eliminate harassment, intimidation, coercion and retaliation in the workplace, the statement said.

“All workers deserve to be treated fairly, and when they are not, they should be able to report it without fear of being harassed or retaliated against,” OFCCP Director Patricia A. Shiu said in the statement. “I am pleased that we were able to achieve a fair and just remedy for these two women and to ensure that the laboratory removes barriers to equal opportunity in the workplace.”

“We disagree with the OFCCP’s findings and characterizations of this matter,” the laboratory said in a statement. “However, we concluded that bringing this matter to closure to resolve what has already been a long, drawn-out and costly process is in the Laboratory’s best interest. As APL has been, we remain fully committed to diversity and inclusion.”

The laboratory, which supports national security, space science and other civilian research and development and initiatives, received more than $3.6 billion in taxpayer-funded federal contracts with agencies such as the departments of Defense, Commerce and Homeland Security from 2009 to 2014, according to the OFCCP.

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