On November 25, 2025, the EEOC announced a lawsuit against Anthony Roofing Tecta America, LLC, and Tecta America Corporation, roofing service providers in Illinois and nationwide. The EEOC alleges race and sex harassment at their Aurora, Illinois location, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.
The EEOC alleges a company vice president repeatedly used racial slurs, including the "N-word", and called a Black employee his "slave," causing the employee to quit after the company failed to stop the behavior.
Other Black employees were allegedly harassed by supervisors and coworkers through racial slurs, such as being called "boy," and other offensive comments.
The same vice president allegedly sexually harassed female employees with offensive comments about oral sex, derogatory remarks about their bodies, and inappropriate sex-based questions.
Employees allegedly reported the harassment to Anthony Roofing management and to Tecta America's human resources department, but the harassment continued.
The EEOC sued in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act after trying to resolve the matter through conciliation.
Source: https://www.eeoc.gov/newsroom/eeoc-sues-anthony-roofing-and-tecta-america-corporation-race-and-sex-harassment
Commentary
In the above matter, the alleged primary harasser is an executive.
HR professionals must be able to act independently when allegations involve senior leaders or revenue-producing personnel. Good practice starts with seeking counsel that can advise on the matter.
Other best practices include:
- Communicating complaints about senior leaders to the chief HR officer, general counsel, or board-level committee, consistent with policy.
- Using neutral or external investigators to avoid conflicts of interest and maintain credibility.
- Ensuring that no one in the chain of command of the accused interferes with the investigation or outcome.
- Advising leadership that protecting the organization requires addressing misconduct even when the accused holds a critical role.
- Communicating outcomes, as appropriate, to complainants to show that concerns were taken seriously.
The final takeaways for HR are that prompt, thorough, and objective management of every complaint - including those against senior leaders - is critical for legal compliance and a safe workplace culture. Empower HR to arrange for investigations and recommend corrective action even when powerful individuals are involved.
