GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) — Hooters of America has reached a settlement with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in a lawsuit over claims that managers at a Greensboro restaurant discriminated against Black and dark-skinned servers, according to court records. In a lawsuit filed on Aug. 24, 2023, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said that managers at a Hooters location in Greensboro would racially discriminate against servers, referred to in the suit as "Hooters Girls," who were Black and or had dark skin tones and claimed that the restaurant, following COVID-19 layoffs, rehired almost exclusively white and light-skinned servers. Hooters of America denied the allegations. In a joint motion, Hooters of America and the EEOC released details of the settlement on Oct. 18, which will be subject to court approval. Hooters of America will pay $250,000 to the Hooters Girls involved in the case. Half of the payments will constitute wages for tax purposes. The company will be required to update the records of any employees involved to say they "resigned" as opposed to being laid off or suspended in 2020, except for those who were rehired and dismissed for cause, and marked "eligible for rehire." Any of these former employees will be able to apply for a job at a corporate-owned Hooters location in the U.S., and Hooters must offer them the position if they meet hiring eligibility criteria if an opening is available. Within 15 days, Hooters must also post a statement on Instagram identifying the company as an equal opportunity employer and encouraging people of all backgrounds to consider working at Hooters. The Greensboro Hooters location will need to ensure anti-discrimination, anti-harassment and anti-retaliation policies are in effect, and all executives, managers, supervisors and human resources employees will be required to complete an annual training program that is two or more hours long. The Lawsuit In the initial complaint, the EEOC alleged that "Hooters Girls," who were Black or had dark skin tones "experienced racial discrimination and hostility from [Hooters]’s managers." The suit said managers subjected workers to "discriminatory comments," including "expressions of preference for white or light skin-toned servers, suggestions that light skin-toned servers were more presentable, and jokes about the appearance and hairstyles of Black and dark skin-toned servers." The suit said white and light skin-toned servers received "friendlier treatment" from managers and were assigned "preferred or more lucrative shifts." More Greensboro News Settlement reached in GSO Hooters discrimination lawsuit Woman shot in face in GSO dies; suspect in custody Trump to hold rally in Greensboro More Greensboro news from MyFOX8.com According to the complaint, the Greensboro restaurant had about 43 servers, roughly 22 of whom were reportedly Black or had dark skin tones, before laying them off in March 2020 due to the pandemic. A manager allegedly told servers that the layoffs would not be permanent. In late April and May 2020, the restaurant began bringing servers back to the restaurant and recalled 13 out of the previous 43 "Hooters Girls." All but one of the recalled servers were white or had light skin tones, the lawsuit said. The lawsuit accused Hooters management of choosing which workers to recall based on their race "with malice or with reckless indifference," a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC asked the court to order Hooters of America to "institute and carry out policies, practices, and programs which provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants irrespective of their race or color, and which eradicate the effects of past and presentunlawful employment practices." They also asked for Hooters to pay the Black and dark-skin-toned former employees a combination of backpay with interest, compensation for past and future losses due to Hooters' alleged illegal employment practices, compensation for non-monetary losses like emotional suffering due to those practices and punitive damages "for their willful, malicious and/or reckless conduct." “When recalling employees from a layoff, it is critical that employers examine their selection criteria to ensure they are objectively verifiable and free from racial bias,” said Melinda C. Dugas, regional attorney for the EEOC's Charlotte District in a news release. “Federal law protects employees from race-based decision making in the terms of employment, including in layoff, recall and hiring decisions.” Charlotte District Director Betsy Rader said, “Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 also prohibits employment decisions based on color, including discrimination based on the lightness or darkness of a person’s skin shade or tone.” Hooters' response to complaint Hooters of America corroborated the EEOC's claim that the Greensboro Hooters had about 43 "Hooters Girls" in March 2020 and laid off about 43 due to the pandemic before re-hiring 13 previously laid-off servers. However, the company argued that "skin tone is subjective, relative and not capable of objective determination." The company also claimed that no managers told servers that the layoffs would not be permanent. Hooters of America denied claims that Black and dark-skinned servers "experienced racial discrimination and hostility from Defendant’s managers" and argued that the pre-COVID complaints should be dismissed because they allegedly "occurred more than 180 days before the underlying filed EEOC charge" and that the statute of limitations has expired. Overall, the company defended its hiring practices, arguing that employment decisions "are justified by legitimate, non-discriminatory, non-retaliatory, and non-pretextual business reasons" that aren't connected to any protected classes. Hooters of America asked the court to dismiss the EEOC's claims with prejudice and make the EEOC pay the company's attorneys' fees.