African-American Employees Plan to Confront Coca-Cola

Black employees of the Coca-Cola Co. plan a bus ride to the company's annual meeting in Delaware next month to urge it to settle a pending racial discrimination lawsuit, according to a report from United Press International. Larry Jones, a former human resources manager who was laid off from the soft-drink company, estimates that about 150 current and former workers will participate in the trip April 15 through 20, the UPI report said.

Jones, who worked for the company for 15 years, told UPI that three buses will carry workers to Coke's annual meeting on April 19 in Wilmington, Del., making stops for rallies in Greensboro, N.C.; Richmond, Va.; and Washington. "We're shareholders and we will be making our voices heard at the meeting," Jones said. "We want to raise the level of public awareness about life inside Coca-Cola for black employees."

Jones is urging Coca-Cola to provide "full and complete repatriation" for black employees in settlement of a lawsuit filed by eight current and former workers claiming that Coke discriminated against blacks in pay, promotions and work evaluations, according to UPI.

Plaintiffs in the lawsuit are seeking class-action status to represent about 2,000 Coke workers. Settlement talks with a mediator are scheduled for next month. The softdrink maker has denied the allegations in the lawsuit and has sought to block it from receiving class-action status.