KANSAS CITY — A former Kansas City Southern Railway Company trainee has filed a federal lawsuit alleging the company discriminated against him because he is Black and retaliated against him after he complained about alleged racial misconduct during his training.
Lorenzo Lewis filed the lawsuit September 30 in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri alleging violations of 42 U.S.C. § 1981. The complaint names Kansas City Southern Railway Company, or KCS, as the defendant and requests a jury trial.
According to the complaint, Lewis received an offer of employment from KCS on Aug. 4, 2022, for a Certified Conductor position. His 16- to 18-week training program was scheduled to begin Sept. 19, 2022, with the first seven to eight weeks taking place in Shreveport, La.
Lewis alleges that on Oct. 1, 2022, he complained to his instructor, Carey Pahal, about a White co-trainee's motorcycle helmet displaying a Confederate flag.
According to the complaint, when Lewis showed Pahal a photograph of the helmet, Pahal responded, “well, what’s wrong with that?” Lewis said KCS's racial diversity policies prohibited such imagery in the workplace and characterized the Confederate flag as a symbol of white supremacy.
The complaint states that Lewis reported the incident and Pahal's response to KCS's ethics hotline around Oct. 4. The following day, he spoke with KCS HR Manager Lesley Myers, who Lewis alleges responded, “well, what do you want me to do about him?”
Lewis alleges that additional racial comments were made by another trainee, Mickey Yardley, on Oct. 11. According to the complaint, Yardley told Lewis and other Black trainees that he had “never been around you Blacks at all when I was growing up” and that Lewis and his Black peers were “different from other Blacks” he had subsequently met.
The complaint alleges the situation escalated Oct. 18, when Yardley became agitated with Lewis during a break in a training classroom. Lewis said he asked Yardley to stop speaking to him, after which Yardley allegedly responded, “boy, you don’t tell me nothin’.”
Lewis understood the word “boy” as a racial insult because of Yardley's previous comments about Black people and his demeanor at the time, according to the complaint.
Lewis alleges that he called the comment racist and told Yardley to turn around in his seat. Yardley then allegedly responded, “I got something I’ll do for you!” The complaint states that people present understood the statement as a threat of physical violence.
According to Lewis, Yardley then approached Pahal, and the two left the classroom. Lewis says he later told Pahal that although he was deeply offended by Yardley's behavior, he had not threatened Yardley, did not intend a confrontation and wanted to continue his training without incident.
Lewis alleges Pahal agreed with him but had already instructed Yardley to contact KCS's ethics hotline and characterize the incident as a threat of violence by Lewis.
Lewis learned Oct. 26 that other trainees were being interviewed about the incident, according to the complaint. Two days later, Myers interviewed Lewis and allegedly raised additional allegations made against him by a White employee. Lewis alleges Myers focused on his admission that he had called Yardley “racist” and asked him to agree that being called a racist could be offensive. Lewis said he had difficulty agreeing given the circumstances and again described Yardley's earlier comments, identifying witnesses who could corroborate his account.
On Nov. 1, 2022, KCS informed Lewis that he would not be retained because he had failed to follow company policies, according to the complaint.
Lewis alleges that the decision was made by KCS's Director of Technical Training and ratified by the company's Labor Relations and Human Resources departments, despite those officials knowing that he had reported racial misconduct. The complaint states that Yardley was not disciplined or terminated.
Lewis contacted KCS Assistant Vice President of Employee Relations Wade Freeman the same day and provided what the complaint describes as a detailed account of the events, including the names of more than 10 witnesses.
Lewis requested reinstatement as a conductor trainee and asked that employees he accused of discriminating against him be terminated.
Freeman allegedly told Lewis that KCS would hire an independent investigator to examine his allegations. The company subsequently hired an outside investigator from a Kansas City law firm. Lewis was interviewed by the investigator and provided additional information in November and December 2022.
The investigator also conducted numerous interviews and reviewed documentation, according to the complaint.
The investigator told Lewis Feb. 2, 2023, that a finalized report would be provided to KCS. Four days later, Lewis was told the investigator could not provide him with a copy but had submitted the report to KCS.
Lewis requested the report from KCS on Feb. 9. Freeman allegedly declined to provide the report but said he would share the investigator's findings during a call the next day.
During that Feb. 10 call, Lewis alleges that Freeman and Senior Human Resources professional Pam Vignatelli told him that the investigation report supported, at minimum, material aspects of his allegations.
Despite that, Lewis alleges Vignatelli told him KCS had decided to “believe our people” and that his career with the company was over.
The complaint alleges KCS ultimately refused to reinstate Lewis despite the investigation and information provided by witnesses.
Lewis contends that White employees were treated more favorably under circumstances that were the same or materially similar, including by allowing comparable or more serious workplace conduct without terminating their employment.
Lewis is bringing separate claims for race discrimination and retaliation under 42 U.S.C. § 1981.
He alleges KCS impaired his employment relationship by crediting accusations against him while discounting his account and supporting witnesses, applying investigative and disciplinary standards to him that were not applied to White employees accused of comparable or more serious misconduct, and refusing to reinstate him.
The complaint further alleges that Lewis's termination and KCS's refusal to reinstate him were retaliation for his complaints about racial discrimination.
Lewis contends his protected activity began with his complaints about the Confederate-flag helmet and continued through his reports to KCS's ethics hotline, HR and upper management.
Lewis alleges he suffered emotional distress, humiliation, loss of dignity, lost income and benefits and other damages as a result of KCS's conduct.
He seeks back pay, lost benefits, front pay and other economic damages, compensatory damages for emotional distress and other intangible injuries, punitive damages, prejudgment and post-judgment interest, costs and reasonable attorneys' fees, as well as other relief the court deems appropriate.
The complaint alleges KCS acted with malice or reckless indifference to Lewis's federally protected rights.
Lewis denies that he threatened Yardley and maintains that he was qualified for his position and performed his duties successfully throughout his tenure with KCS.
The lawsuit asks the court to enter judgment in Lewis's favor and includes his demand for a jury trial. He is represented by attorney Deaken Z. Shuler of Pollard PLLC.
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, Western Division case number: 4:26-cv-00839
