Bass Pro agreed to pay $10.5 million to settle a nationwide class action case brought by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, according to the Houston Chronicle.
The lawsuit, first filed in Houston in 2011, charged Bass Pro rejected qualified black and Hispanic job applicants and retaliated against employees who objected to the alleged practice.
The proposed settlement still has to be approved by the court.
According to the agreement filed Monday in federal court in Houston, the settlement funds will compensate affected black and Hispanic job seekers. Bass Pro will also establish a diversity office and find job candidates by participating in job fairs in minority communities and recruiting at colleges with significant minority populations.
Bass Pro maintains that it did not engage in any unlawful activities based on race or national origin nor in any retaliatory conduct, according to the agreement.
