P&G embroiled in hate crime allegations

US – Employees at a Proctor and Gamble plant in Missouri, a Midwestern state in the US, say they have faced racist threats at work. 

Several current and former black employees at Proctor and Gamble (P&G) have reported seeing rope nooses hanging on a locker, on a paint machine and on desks over the course of two years. With cell phone images of these evidence in hand, the black workers have filed discrimination complaints with the Missouri Human Rights Commission.

Despite filing charges, the hate crimes are affecting the workers’ ability to concentrate at work. “They were having problems ranging from not being able to sleep, fear of going to work, fear of their lives being threatened.” physician Byron Glenn, who treated some of the black employees for stress, told the state’s media broadcaster, KFVS12. “One patient had to get a permit for a concealed weapon because he felt his life was being threatened.”

With 1,200 people employed at the plant, P&G leaders are taking these claims seriously. Regina Gray, one of the plant’s managers said the company has hired a private investigator to get to the bottom of the problem as they want to “help employees feel safe, at work and at home”.

While actions have been taken by the company to stop the threats, the targeted employees remain uncertain if they want to continue working at P&G. According to KFVS12, “they would like to continue to keep their jobs because they get paid so well by the company, but they don't know if they will ever feel truly safe there again”.