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    New York Attorney General Letitia James Letter To NFL

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    Anthony J. Perez
    Letter sent by New York AG Letitia James to the NFL asking the league to address recent allegations of workplace inequity.

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    New York Attorney General Letitia James Letter To NFL

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    Anthony J. Perez
    148 views2 pages
    Letter sent by New York AG Letitia James to the NFL asking the league to address recent allegations of workplace inequity.

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    New York Attorney General Letitia James Letter to NFL

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    Letter sent by New York AG Letitia James to the NFL asking the league to address recent allegations of workplace inequity.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    148 views2 pages

    New York Attorney General Letitia James Letter To NFL

    Uploaded by

    Anthony J. Perez
    Letter sent by New York AG Letitia James to the NFL asking the league to address recent allegations of workplace inequity.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 2

    STATE OF NEW YORK

    OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

    LETITIA JAMES DIVISION OF SOCIAL JUSTICE


    ATTORNEY GENERAL CIVIL RIGHTS BUREAU

    April 6, 2022

    Roger Goodell, Commissioner


    National Football League
    345 Park Ave
    New York, NY 10154

    Dear Commissioner Goodell,

    We write to express our grave concerns about the recent allegations in the New York
    Times by over thirty former employees of the National Football League, who described a
    workplace culture that is overtly hostile to women. We, the attorneys general of New York,
    Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington State, are deeply committed to
    enforcing federal, state, and local antidiscrimination laws that protect workers and further
    equality of opportunity for employees throughout our states. With 1100 employees at the
    N.F.L., 37% of whom are women and 30% of whom are people of color, it is imperative that
    you ensure that all employees are treated equally, fairly and with the dignity they deserve. In
    New York, where the NFL is headquartered, the Office of the Attorney General has never
    hesitated to take action to protect employees from sexual harassment and abuse, whether they
    are entry-level employees of the Weinstein Company or servers and bartenders at Batali-owned
    restaurants.

    We all watched in horror in 2014 when the video of Ray Rice striking, knocking out,
    and spitting on his fiancé was made public. In the aftermath, you promised to take gender
    violence seriously and improve the institutional culture for women at the N.F.L. These recent
    allegations suggest that you have not. Female employees reported that they were subjected to
    repeated viewings of the Rice video, with commentary by coworkers that the victim had
    brought the violence on herself. Other women reported that, in a training intended to improve
    sensitivity on the issue, they were asked to raise their hand to self-identify if they had been
    victims of domestic violence or knew someone who had. This is NOT doing better.
    Antidiscrimination laws in many states, including New York, prohibit employers from
    subjecting domestic violence victims, as well as women and people of color, to a hostile work
    environment.

    In addition, female employees told the Times that they were held back and criticized for
    having an “aggressive tone”—an often unfair stereotype of women, especially women of color,
    who try to advance in a male dominated workplace. This comment is particularly ironic coming

    28 LIBERTY STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10005 ● PHONE (212) 416-8250 ● WWW.AG.NY.GOV


    from a manager at the N.F.L., where aggression is prized and celebrated on the field. Other
    women described experiencing unwanted touching from male bosses, attending parties where
    prostitutes were hired, being passed over for promotions based on their gender, and being
    pushed out for complaining about discrimination. In fact, some former female employees have
    since learned that there were no records of their complaints of gender discrimination.

    All of this is entirely unacceptable and potentially unlawful. The N.F.L. must do
    better—pink jerseys are not a replacement for equal treatment and full inclusion of women in
    the workplace. Our offices will use the full weight of our authority to investigate and prosecute
    allegations of harassment, discrimination, or retaliation by employers throughout our states,
    including at the National Football League.

    Letitia James
    Attorney General
    State of New York

    Kwame Raoul Keith Ellison


    Attorney General Attorney General
    State of Illinois State of Minnesota

    Maura Healey Ellen F. Rosenblum


    Attorney General Attorney General
    Commonwealth of Massachusetts State of Oregon

    Bob Ferguson
    Attorney General
    State of Washington

    28 LIBERTY STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10005 ● PHONE (212) 416-8250 ● WWW.AG.NY.GOV

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