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Putting Out the Fire Created by Ricci

By Patricia Anderson Pryor
August 25, 2009

For employment attorneys and human resource professionals, the phrase “no good deed goes unpunished” applies all too often. The Supreme Court recently affirmed this adage in Ricci v. DeStefano, 129 S. Ct. 2658 (2009).

In Ricci, the city employer refused to certify the results of a promotional exam for its firefighters because of fear that doing so would result in disparate impact discrimination and liability. The African-American pass rate was half that of white test takers. The city received political pressure and threats of litigation if it certified the results. Consequently, the city decided not to promote anyone, including the white and hispanic employees who otherwise would have been promoted as a result of the exam. The employer argued it acted in good-faith compliance with Title VII. The Supreme Court recognized that the employer's objective was to avoid disparate impact discrimination (and liability), nevertheless, the Court concluded “whatever the city's ultimate aim ' however, well intentioned and benevolent it might have seemed ' the city made its employment decision because of race.” Id. at 2674.

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