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Niketown In Chicago
Embroiled In Legal Dispute |
A race discrimination lawsuit brought by 18 current and former African-American
employees of Chicago’s Niketown store in ’03 has been granted class-action status,
“creating a potentially damaging public relations problem” for Nike, according
to Ameet Sachdev of the CHICAGO TRIBUNE. The suit claims that Niketown “systematically
discriminated against these workers in hiring, promotions, benefits and workplace
discipline, thus subjecting them to a hostile environment.” The suit also alleges
that African-American customers, including Bulls F Tyson Chandler and three Packers
players, “were subject to greater scrutiny and monitoring at the Chicago store.”
In granting class-action status, U.S. District Judge Milton Shadur “rejected Nike’s
arguments that the allegations of poor treatment were isolated and random.” A
status hearing is planned for next week. Nike Dir of Global Issues Management
Vada Manager said in response to the suit, “We want to communicate to our customers
that we don’t believe the allegations made in the case are consistent with our
culture of inclusion and respect. We don’t believe this reflects our corporate
philosophy.” Marketing experts said that the suit “could cause distress at Nike.”
Univ. of Michigan associate professor of marketing Christie Nordhielm said, “Minority
groups tend to pay more attention to this type of issue than others. The fact
that the Chicago Niketown is a flagship store, it will cause a bigger fuss than
most” (
CHICAGO
TRIBUNE, 3/24).
