After a federal judge tossed out parts of a race and religious discrimination lawsuit against the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation in July, the woman behind the suit amended her complaint, and the case is headed for settlement talks.
On July 15, U.S. District Court Judge Mark S. Davis tossed out parts of a lawsuit brought by Laura Hill against the state agency because they were past their statute of limitations, but he left a caveat for her to refile an amended complaint.
By the end of July, Hill had done just that. The Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation continues to deny Hill’s allegations that she was a victim of a hostile work environment and discriminated against.
The foundation operates museums and interpretive sites in Yorktown and Jamestown, which Hill worked at for 11 years, according to the filings.
“The outcome is not surprising,” said her lawyer David Branch after Davis tossed parts of the suit. “Most of these claims are from activities back in 2013 when she did not have counsel.”
“This has very little impact on the case. The judge basically found that you can’t go forward with (those claims) because it’s past the statute of limitations.”
Now the case is headed for settlement talks, according to federal court filings. The case will be heard by a federal magistrate on Feb. 5, 2020, and the foundation and Hill are required to work toward a good-faith, compromise settlement, the filings said.
Hill originally sued the foundation on Oct. 26, 2018 seeking damages of at least $12 million due to religious and racial discrimination in its hiring practices and work environment, according to the lawsuit.
In a December 2018 federal court filing, Hill amended her complaint against the foundation to include instances of arbitrariness, hypocrisy and “systemic discrimination.”
Hill, a black woman, said she endured a hostile work environment including racial and religious discrimination by her supervisors and coworkers after she spoke up for herself, according to the filings.
On seven occasions between July 2015 and April 2018, Hill applied for a new position but was not hired or selected for an interview despite her education qualifications, merit and experience, according to the filings.
The foundation said it only hired the most qualified people who applied for the positions. The foundation noted the state Office of Equal Employment and Dispute Resolution investigated Hill’s claims and determined there had been no wrongdoing.
On all of the occasions, the foundation hired white staffers, Hill alleged in the suit. However, the foundation said in at least one of those instances they hired a Native American man.
Of those hired, at least two of the new staffers did not meet the education or experience requirements, the suit alleges.
Hill also requested time off to attend religious services, which she alleges she was denied from participating in them by her supervisor.
Hill continues to demand at least $12 million in damages, a fact that has remained unchanged throughout the filings.
In an opinion letter to The Virginia Gazette published in August, Hill argued African-Americans are entitled to reparations for racial injustices.
“…(R)acial reconciliation requires that Virginia ‘loosen the purse strings’ for reparations,” Hill wrote before suggesting the state should “provide oversight of the recruitment, hiring and advancement of African-American employees.”
