Black worker fired for embracing her natural hair; told to wear a wig by employer

by Atlanta Tribune Imani Jackson faced unjust termination after wearing her natural hair at work, refusing to conform to Eurocentric beauty standards imposed by her employer. The incident occurred at American Screening LLC, a drug and medical testing company in Louisiana. It sparked outrage and shed light on the systemic biases that continue to plague corporate environments. A federal lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) says the woman’s employer at American Screening LLC complained that she previously “‘came in with beautiful hair’ but now ‘looks like she rolls out of bed.”& Jackson, a Black woman, initially wore a wig with straight hair during her first month of work, as it was uncomfortable and time-consuming to maintain. However, she made the decision to embrace her natural hair, a move that her employer disapproved of.& Despite being instructed to wear straight hair—the wig—instead, Imani continued to come to work with her natural hair, typically styled in a neat bun. The company owner’s discriminatory actions came to a head when Imani was fired in late October 2018, merely two months after being hired. Shockingly, she was replaced by a White employee, which led to further accusations of race discrimination...