2 African-American security officers file suit against Madison Square Gardens www.privateofficer.com
NEW YORK NY JAN 3 2008
Two African-American women who were security supervisors at Madison Square Garden accused arena management in a lawsuit filed Wednesday in Brooklyn Supreme Court of discriminating against them by giving them less-desirable assignments and favoring white employees despite their lesser qualifications.
The women — Diane Henson and Sheila Gay-Robbins — described incidents of discrimination that were different from the sexual harassment accusations made by Anucha Browne Sanders and by Courtney Prince, a former captain of the Rangers City Skaters cheerleaders.
Browne Sanders, a former Knicks senior vice president, settled for damages of $11.5 million last month after a trial that held Coach Isiah Thomas liable for sexual harassment. Soon after, Prince settled for an undisclosed sum before a trial date was set.
On Oct. 8, six days after a federal jury’s verdict for Browne Sanders, Henson held a news conference to announce her intention to sue the Garden. Gay-Robbins was not identified then as the second woman who was going to join Henson in the lawsuit.
Henson and Gay-Robbins, each in her 50s, said their problems began after the hiring in 2005 of Kirk Randazzo, the Garden’s vice president for event operations, and Joseph DiCoco, a director of event operations.
Henson said she refused to sign a suspension notice based on “stale” accusations against her by former employees. Subsequently, she was assigned to the arena’s “nosebleed section,” which required that she supervise “children, large groups and unruly youths.” She said her schedule was less flexible than those of comparable male and white employees and that she worked longer hours for lower pay than some of them. She also said that “younger white female employees” who were “personally involved” with Randazzo and DiCoco received promotions and better pay.
Last March, she said, she was reprimanded for “alleged tardiness and/or absences,” but when she complained that white employees who also arrived late were not disciplined, she was told, “It’s about you,” a quotation attributed to Randazzo and DiCoco.
She said her complaints were not investigated by the Garden’s employee relations department and no action was taken. After she resigned under pressure in July after 11 years, she accused the Garden of circulating a photograph of her as a way to alert employees to prevent her from entering the building.
Gay-Robbins said she “advised” Randazzo not to post a photograph of her. But she said she saw him do it “in the same retaliatory and racist manner” before her resignation after five years at the Garden.
Gay-Robbins’s accusations are similar to Henson’s. She said that as a result of her complaints about discriminatory treatment, she received “disciplinary memoranda based on unsubstantiated and pretextual allegations.”
In a statement, the Garden said: “In addition to our own internal review, we hired an attorney to investigate the allegations of Ms. Henson and Ms. Gay-Robbins, who found them to be without merit. We will vigorously defend ourselves.”
The women — Diane Henson and Sheila Gay-Robbins — described incidents of discrimination that were different from the sexual harassment accusations made by Anucha Browne Sanders and by Courtney Prince, a former captain of the Rangers City Skaters cheerleaders.
Browne Sanders, a former Knicks senior vice president, settled for damages of $11.5 million last month after a trial that held Coach Isiah Thomas liable for sexual harassment. Soon after, Prince settled for an undisclosed sum before a trial date was set.
On Oct. 8, six days after a federal jury’s verdict for Browne Sanders, Henson held a news conference to announce her intention to sue the Garden. Gay-Robbins was not identified then as the second woman who was going to join Henson in the lawsuit.
Henson and Gay-Robbins, each in her 50s, said their problems began after the hiring in 2005 of Kirk Randazzo, the Garden’s vice president for event operations, and Joseph DiCoco, a director of event operations.
Henson said she refused to sign a suspension notice based on “stale” accusations against her by former employees. Subsequently, she was assigned to the arena’s “nosebleed section,” which required that she supervise “children, large groups and unruly youths.” She said her schedule was less flexible than those of comparable male and white employees and that she worked longer hours for lower pay than some of them. She also said that “younger white female employees” who were “personally involved” with Randazzo and DiCoco received promotions and better pay.
Last March, she said, she was reprimanded for “alleged tardiness and/or absences,” but when she complained that white employees who also arrived late were not disciplined, she was told, “It’s about you,” a quotation attributed to Randazzo and DiCoco.
She said her complaints were not investigated by the Garden’s employee relations department and no action was taken. After she resigned under pressure in July after 11 years, she accused the Garden of circulating a photograph of her as a way to alert employees to prevent her from entering the building.
Gay-Robbins said she “advised” Randazzo not to post a photograph of her. But she said she saw him do it “in the same retaliatory and racist manner” before her resignation after five years at the Garden.
Gay-Robbins’s accusations are similar to Henson’s. She said that as a result of her complaints about discriminatory treatment, she received “disciplinary memoranda based on unsubstantiated and pretextual allegations.”
In a statement, the Garden said: “In addition to our own internal review, we hired an attorney to investigate the allegations of Ms. Henson and Ms. Gay-Robbins, who found them to be without merit. We will vigorously defend ourselves.”
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