A former employee has reignited a legal battle against a major railway company, accusing it of racial discrimination and retaliation. Ron Morris filed the complaint in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on October 18, 2024, targeting BNSF Railway Company. The lawsuit claims that Morris faced continuous rejection from employment opportunities due to alleged racial bias and retaliatory practices by his former employer.
Ron Morris, an African American male and former conductor at BNSF Railway Company, asserts that his termination in 2013 was a result of racial discrimination. He initially filed a complaint in 2015 under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and 42 U.S.C. §1981, which led to a favorable jury ruling in 2019, later affirmed by the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in 2020. Despite this victory, Morris alleges that he has been unable to secure employment within the railway industry due to what he describes as "blackballing" by BNSF. His attempts to clear his employment record with the company were denied, and subsequent applications for re-employment were consistently rejected with explanations such as "considering other candidates" or "left in bad standing."
Morris’s lawsuit details numerous instances where he applied for various positions between 2013 and 2023 but was met with repeated denials. In February 2021, he sought assistance from Andrea Smith in Labor Relations at BNSF to amend his termination record from "dismissal" to "resignation," hoping it would improve his re-employment prospects; however, this request was denied. Further complicating matters, Morris discovered that Scott Hendrickson, a supervisor involved in previous discriminatory actions against him, had been rehired by BNSF.
The complaint highlights a particularly telling interaction with Jeremy Brown, Vice President at BNSF. When discussing his rejected applications in February 2023, Brown allegedly remarked: “who would want to hire someone with a settlement against you?” This comment is perceived by Morris as evidence of ongoing retaliatory animus linked to his earlier legal actions against the company.
Morris is seeking multiple forms of relief from the court including a permanent injunction against further acts of racial discrimination by BNSF Railway Company. He also demands compensatory damages for lost employment benefits and emotional distress caused by these discriminatory practices. Additionally, punitive damages are sought for what is described as willful conduct by the defendant.
Representing Ron Morris are attorneys Dan Augustus Asonye and Uche O. Asonye from Asonye & Associates based in Chicago. The case awaits assignment of a judge under Case ID: 1:24-cv-10811.