Eugene, OR – Today, Oregon 4th Congressional District Candidate Monique DeSpain reacted to news reports last week of yet another racial discrimination lawsuit claim from Congresswoman Val Hoyle’s tenure leading Oregon’s Bureau of Labor and Industry (BOLI). The latest lawsuit resulted in a $425,000 damages award to a Black civil rights investigator who herself was found to have experienced racial hostility in the workplace, further underscoring the pattern of leadership failures there under Hoyle.
The recent damages award is on the heels of another award just months ago of $1.7 Million in damages and a supplemental $1.1 Million attorney’s fees award to another Black employee at BOLI who was found to have experienced racial discrimination at work. Both employees worked under Hoyle in the BOLI Civil Rights Division, the department responsible for rooting out racial discrimination in Oregon’s workplaces, but, instead, became the victims of such discrimination. Hoyle was directly informed of the issues by these employees but reportedly “did not take further action.”
“Once again, Val Hoyle failed to take prompt action to address workplace racial discrimination and stuck the taxpayers of Oregon with the bill for her leadership failure at BOLI. This is gross neglect of her sworn duties as a public official - plain and simple - and it shows us who Val Hoyle really is and how she will perform in her current position as our Congresswoman,” said Monique DeSpain. “Val touts hiring diverse employees while spouting platitudes about combating racial discrimination in the private sector workplace but couldn’t figure out how to put a stop to it within her own government bureau that is, ironically, tasked with ensuring discrimination-free workplaces for all.”
Upon settlement of the case, the current Commissioner of the BOLI, Christina Stephenson, issued a letter of apology to Ms. Pomerantz, saying that BOLI “fell short” of the bureau’s vision that “every individual deserves to be treated with fairness, respect and dignity” and promised to “make amends to redress the damage done…”
“This happened on Val Hoyle’s watch. Where is her apology letter to the victims, and to we, the taxpayers, left to foot the bill?” DeSpain added. “Instead, she evaded responsibility claiming she had ‘no influence, was not consulted,’ and did ‘not know why (BOLI) settled.’ That’s not accountable leadership.”
“As a senior officer in the Air Force and as a workplace investigator and attorney advising private companies, I fought against workplace discrimination. It is vital to take every case seriously and act swiftly to hold those engaging in workplace misconduct accountable, including the leaders tolerating such misconduct.”
“We will not get the solutions the people of the 4th District need by continuing to send to Congress the same failed career politicians who neglect their most critical duties while dodging any responsibility for the consequences. It is time to hold Val Hoyle accountable for her disastrous record on racial discrimination by voting her out and deploying me to Washington, D.C., in 2024 instead,” stated DeSpain. “I am an outsider who will stand up for what is right and work tirelessly to achieve the commonsense policies that make our communities safer and more prosperous.”
Monique DeSpain is a retired U.S. Air Force Colonel, mother of twin boys, and public policy advocate who resides in Eugene, Oregon. She is a candidate for the Republican nomination for Oregon’s 4th Congressional District in a bid to unseat incumbent Congresswoman Val Hoyle in 2024 and bring about a safer, more prosperous Oregon. Her campaign website is www.MoniqueForCongress.com
To arrange a candidate interview or obtain additional information about her campaign, please contact the Communications Director, Kevin Hoar, at press@moniqueforcongress.com or call 541-321-6095.