A Black woman has been awarded $800,000 after she was fired over her locs in Montgomery, Alabama.
Davita Key filed a lawsuit after she was fired from Dynamic Security after being told that she couldn’t wear her hair in locs back in 2017.
Key says she was hired by Dynamic Security to work at the Hyundai plant as a clerk in the mail room. During her interview, she was told that her shoulder-length locs did not violate company policy.
Related: ‘Where Is the Fairness’: Rastafarian Man Alleges Kentucky Prison Violated His Religious Rights By Cutting His Locs After Banning Black Hairstyles, Removing Black Hair Products
After beginning work on July 31, 2017, with her hair styled the same way it was during her job interview, Key claimed that after she advised a supervisor and a manager — Gloria Robinson and Maurice Chambliss — that she was pregnant and provided a doctor’s note clearing her for work without restrictions, she was informed that she could not wear her hair in locs.
Key says that despite her offering to wear a hat or change her hair, she was terminated days later and told it was because she was unwilling to abide by the HEA dress code. Her termination came after another manager, Cassandra Williams, was advised about Key’s pregnancy.
“About 10 to 20 minutes after Key gave the doctor’s note to Robinson — who had since returned to the office she shared with Williams — Williams came out of the office and asked Key, ‘What’s wrong with your hair?’” the lawsuit reads. “Williams then returned to her office without saying more.”
Key then began her training for the job but was interrupted an hour later and asked to go to Williams’ office where she was told her hair was an issue.
“About an hour into the training, Chambliss retrieved Key from the mailroom to meet with Robinson in her office. When Key arrived, Williams and Robinson began questioning Key about her hairstyle,” the suit continued….
Read the full article here
