Attorney General Mayes Successfully Resolves Sex Discrimination Lawsuit Against Contract Mining Company

PHOENIX - Attorney General Kris Mayes announced today that the Civil Rights Division of the Attorney General's Office secured a Consent Decree to successfully resolve a public enforcement discrimination lawsuit against Turner Mining Group, LLC ("Turner"). The suit alleged that Turner violated the Arizona Civil Rights Act ("ACRA") when it subjected a female truck driver to a hostile work environment based on sex and retaliated against her by terminating her after she reported the harassment.

The Arizona Civil Rights Act ("ACRA") prohibits employers from subjecting its employees to different terms, conditions, and privileges of employment based on their sex and prohibits retaliation against employees for engaging in protected activity.

"Women have been involved in the mining industry since the 1860s. The workplace is not equal until women have a right to pursue the profession of their choosing without the additional barrier of workplace harassment, not to mention retaliation for reporting that harassment." said Attorney General Mayes, "My office continues to ensure that employment decisions in our state are based on the quality of a person's work and their merit rather than their sex, as required by Arizona law."

Under the State's Consent Decree, Turner agrees to:

• Modify its policies and procedures to prohibit discrimination, harassment, and retaliation;
• Train its personnel on state and federal laws which prevent sex discrimination, sexual harassment, and retaliation, with additional training for human resources, supervisory, and managerial staff; and
• Submit to up to three years of monitoring by the Civil Rights Division to ensure compliance with the Consent Decree.

The mission of the Civil Rights Division of the Arizona Attorney General's Office is to enforce civil rights laws, increase public awareness of civil rights, provide dispute resolution services, and offer community services throughout the State. If you believe you've been discriminated against in housing, employment, public accommodations, or voting, please contact our office at (602) 542-5263 or submit an intake questionnaire at www.azag.gov/complaints/civil-rights .

This litigation was handled by Assistant Attorneys General Maura Hilser and Tarah White with litigation support provided by Paralegal Frankie Hensley. The investigation was conducted by Compliance Officer Alisha Kram.

A copy of the Consent Decree is available here .