Black workers at Chicago's Department of Water Management have filed a federal lawsuit contending they were routinely denied promotions and subjected to racial slurs.
The lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court also asserts blacks were also sexually assaulted because of their race. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of seven current and former employees of the department, and it seeks class-action status.
The lawsuit alleges that when complaints were filed about a hostile work environment, black workers were "subjected to unfair, arbitrary and capricious discipline for speaking out."
The complaint comes weeks after the leadership at the water department was shuffled after a probe uncovered racist and sexist emails shared among department supervisors.
City officials did not have an immediate response to the lawsuit.
