Rockland Bakery pays $850K to settle hiring discrimination charges

Nanuet-based Rockland Bakery Inc. will pay $850,000 in conciliation agreement with the U.S. Department of Labor”™s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) to resolve charges of alleged discrimination in hiring.

An OFCCP compliance review determined that Rockland Bakery discriminated against female, Black and Asian applicants who applied to work as cashiers, packers and bakers during 2017. The agency reported the company”™s practice of relying on a word-of-mouth employee referral and recruitment system partially contributed to the lack of a diverse workforce, which it concluded was in violation of an executive order related to hiring discrimination by federal contractors.

As part of its conciliation agreement, Rockland Bakery agreed to extend 52 job opportunities to female, Black and Asian applicants, provide training to all company employees involved in hiring decisions, and review and revise its recruitment processes.

“This investigation demonstrates that federal contractors should not rely solely on employee referrals to replace good faith outreach and recruitment, especially when their applicant pools do not resemble the available workforce in the communities they serve,” said Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs Northeast Regional Director Diana Sen.

Photo courtesy of Rockland Bakery.