Lawsuit: Wayne County airport discriminates against white employees

A reverse discrimination lawsuit alleges the Wayne County Airport authority has created a hostile working environment for white employees, calling them "racist" over legitimate business decisions, shutting them out of meetings, and giving preferential treatment to Black workers, job applicants and minority-owned businesses because of their race.

"The effect has been Black employees are now immune to criticism, while white employees are expected to accept their relegation to second class status or face retaliation," states the lawsuit, which also alleges that Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport "regularly bypasses the top-rated bidder on contracts in favor of lower-rated minority owned businesses."

Moreover, the suit alleges, the airport unlawfully uses race as the No. 1 factor "in all employment decisions."

The suit was filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court on behalf of Frances Wood, described as an award-winning customer experience program manager who was fired in June after nine years of working for the airport authority. She alleges it was retaliation for her venting about being mistreated because she was white, and for her recommendation that two problematic Black employees who weren't showing up to work be terminated.

Wood got labeled a racist and lost her job, her suit states.

The Wayne County Airport Authority declined comment, citing its policy not to comment on pending litigation.

'What have you done for me lately'

Wood's lawsuit alleges the discriminatory practices against her and others at work dates to a 2021 meeting where the airport authority board announced what Wood alleges was a "new, illegal core value: using race as a determinative factor in all decisions relating to employment and contract awards."

It was in that meeting, the lawsuit claims, when the board questioned a decision to hire a new fire chief.

"Rather than focus on the new fire chief’s qualifications, Board Member Dennis W. Archer Jr. focused on the race of the successful candidate," the lawsuit states. "To everyone’s shock, Archer asked the vice president of public safety whether the chosen candidate 'was a brother.' "

Archer then followed up with another question for the airport's chief operating officer, asking him: “Like Janet Jackson says, what have you done for me lately? ' ”

"These stunning questions sent shock waves through (the airport) offices and was the beginning of the board’s pattern and practice of directing management to use race as a determinative factor in all decisions relating to employment and contract awards," the lawsuit states. "Since then, the various vice presidents have regularly been called in front of the board and questioned on the race of the employees filling the various positions within the department."

The lawsuit continues:

"The intent of this constant questioning is to ensure management continues to use race as a determinative factor in all employment decisions."

Woods maintains in her lawsuit that while she "fully supports lawful efforts to encourage diversity in the workplace," the airport board and management "have crossed the line of lawful encouragement of diversity into illegal discrimination."

Wood's lawyer said the airport retaliated against Wood not only because of what she did, but because of her race.

"It's just good ol' plain discrimination, and they don't care," said attorney James Fett, arguing the airport is "so blatant in violating what is a long-established rule − race cannot come into play when you're deciding about employment or contracting."

"We’re not on a crusade here," Fett said. "We're just asking for her to be treated fairly, which is not by her race or color."

'A stellar employee'

According to her lawsuit, Wood was an exemplary employee who helped the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport earn numerous awards related to customer experience, including the 2019 J.D. Power Award forhighest customer satisfaction score among mega airports; the 2020 ASQ Best in North America for Customer Experience amid the COVID-19 pandemic award, and the 2021 ASQ Voice of the Customer Recognition award.

Woods was also given the 2020 Core Value Award and CEO Coin for exemplifying the airport authority's values.

"As the award demonstrates, (Wood) has always exhibited and supported (the airport's) core values, including diversity and inclusion," the lawsuit states.

'An obsession with race'

In her lawsuit, Wood say she experienced "perhaps the most egregious" example of discrimination when she worked in the Department of Communications and External Affairs. Her supervisor was Erica Donerson, a Black female and vice president of communications who Wood says discriminated against her white subordinates after the board issued a directive to use race in employment decisions.

"Donerson had already harbored an obsession with race," the lawsuit states. "But to Donerson, not only are all races not equal, certain Black employees are 'Blacker' than others."

Donerson declined comment.

The lawsuit cites a meeting during which Donerson allegedly disparaged a Black co-worker who had left for another company, stating that she " 'wasn't very Black.' "

Wood was confused by this comment, so Donerson allegedly further explained that the former co-worker “was raised by white parents.”

What led to the firing

In June 2021, Wood received reports that two young Black female customer service representatives had "extremely poor and problematic" performance reviews. They were failing to show up for work and/or failing to fulfill their job duties, causing "major operational problems" within Wood's department, the lawsuit states.

Wood brought this to the attention of Donerson and suggested the customer service reps be terminated due to performance issues.

But instead of considering the suggestion on the merits, the lawsuit states, Donerson accused Wood and others of being racist.

Wood tried to assure Donerson that the suggestion was not race-related in any way, but rather based on "objective facts demonstrating that the CSRs’ poor performance warranted termination.

But Donerson continued to accuse Wood and others of being racist, the suit states, and asserted that Wood "could not fire two Black females when the board was pushing for more Black employees."

Wood alleges that after this incident, Donerson began to lay the groundwork for her firing, concluding that as a "white woman," she did not understand her role at work. Donerson started excluding Wood and other white employees from meetings and events involving customer experience, and instead included only a Black middle manager who "had zero experience whatsoever in these areas, but was the correct race."

Wood alleges that a manager secretly recorded her conversations with Wood. In one of those conversations, Wood vented about her and another white colleague being excluded from a presentation, and mentioned her disappointment of not being included "or even given some credit for the project she had spent 10 years on."

“I guess we’re not the right race,” Wood told her Black colleague, not knowing she was being recorded.

The colleague gave the recording to Donerson.

Wood was immediately fired.

"Upon hearing that (Wood) was dissatisfied with being discriminated against and her second-class status as a white woman within the department, Donerson immediately terminated (her)," the lawsuit states.

Contact Tresa Baldas: tbaldas@freepress.com

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Woman says Wayne County Airport Authority fired her because she's white.