Ca. Teacher Sues Union Alleging Racial Segregation
Federal lawsuit argues union’s ‘BIPOC’ board seat violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and state law
May 30, 2024, Elk Grove, Ca.—A California history teacher has filed a federal lawsuit alleging that a teachers’ union discriminated against him on the basis of race in direct violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and California law. Isaac Newman, who is white, took legal action because his union requires candidates for a union executive board seat to “self-identify” as a racial minority, excluding him from the position based on the color of his skin.
“Race-based discrimination is both immoral and illegal, yet my union has decided to segregate its ranks by imposing a racial litmus test as a requirement to run for this board seat,” said Newman, who teaches at Elk Grove Unified School District in suburban Sacramento. “Union officials apparently believe that the best solution to America’s shameful history of discrimination is more discrimination. I believe that their actions are an illegal and a divisive distraction from our educational mission.”
In 2023, Elk Grove Education Association (EGEA) officials voted to create a “BIPOC At-Large” seat on its executive board. The EGEA’s statewide affiliate union, the California Teachers Association, reviewed and approved the board position later that year.
Newman, a decade-long union member, resolved to run for a board seat, but the union’s nomination form required him to check a box confirming that he identified as a member of one of several racial minority groups. Newman could not in good conscience check the box and was, therefore, unable to run for the board position.
Above: Screenshot of the checkbox on the EGEA’s board candidacy form.
“Teachers’ unions don’t get a pass from laws that prohibit racial discrimination,” said Nathan McGrath, president and general counsel for the Fairness Center, which represents Newman. “The Civil Rights Act explicitly forbids unions from discriminating based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin and from segregating members based on these attributes. Our client alleges that union officials violated state and federal law by preventing him from running for a union leadership position based on the color of his skin.”
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 says it is unlawful for a “labor organization” to “discriminate against… any individual because of his race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.”
California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act also prohibits “discriminat[ion] against any person because of… race… in the election of officers of the labor organization.”
In his complaint, filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, Newman is asking the court to order the union to remove race-based criteria for the board seat, or eliminate the position, and to prohibit the union from creating future segregated offices.
Newman and Fairness Center attorneys are available for comment. Please contact John Bouder at media@fairnesscenter.org or 844.293.1001 to schedule an interview.
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The Fairness Center is a nonprofit, public interest law firm offering free legal services to those hurt by public-sector union officials. For more information visit www.FairnessCenter.org.
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