Entergy Corporation, Violating Federal Law, Louisiana 2024

Entergy Corporation, a federal contractor, is facing a federal lawsuit for violating federal law and executive order. The lawsuit alleges that the company refused to comply with federal contractor requirements to submit proof of required affirmative action programs to the Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP).

According to the lawsuit, Entergy has refused to supply documentation and cooperate with auditing attempts, making it impossible for OFCCP to determine if the company is in compliance with its affirmative action obligations. This includes discriminating against employees and job applicants because of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, disability or protected veteran status.

Entergy, as a federal contractor, earns more than $1 billion in taxpayer-funded contracts to provide services to the government. The company is required to take affirmative action to employ qualified women, minorities, people with disabilities and protected veterans. However, since May 2012, Entergy has refused OFCCP’s repeated requests to turn over its written affirmative action programs and other records requested as part of the routine compliance review of 11 Entergy locations in Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division stated that government contractors that choose to accept federal funds also agree to abide by laws and regulations aimed at preventing employment discrimination. “When a government contractor, like Entergy, refuses to adhere to the obligations it accepted as a federal contractor, that refusal undermines the public trust that taxpayers expect in ensuring that public funding is used in a manner that complies with both federal law and agency regulations,” Samuels said.

OFCCP Director Patricia A. Shiu urged Entergy Chairman and CEO Leo Denault to respect the nation’s hard-won civil rights laws. “This issue has been litigated and re-litigated many times, and the courts have been clear: companies that profit from federal contracts must comply with our requests for proof that they are meeting their obligations,” Shiu said.

The lawsuit seeks a permanent injunction requiring Entergy to comply with its obligations, including its obligation to produce documents requested by OFCCP within 30 days of the request. The case is being handled by Senior Trial Attorney Valerie Meyer of the Civil Rights Division’s Employment Litigation Section.

The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana has jurisdiction over the case. The lawsuit is a reminder that government contractors must abide by the law and regulations aimed at preventing employment discrimination.

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