When Annette Craig started as a driver for FedEx Ground at the Philadelphia terminal in 2005, her manager, Pete Adams, routinely diverted her from her primary route to deliver through dangerous parts of Philadelphia that required more customer signatures and took longer to complete. For six months, Craig, a single mother, didn’t return home until after 11:00 p.m. and hardly saw her children. She claims that despite repeatedly complaining to Adams, he continued to assign her the difficult route, while giving more desirable routes and stops off her easier primary route to white male drivers—some of whom were newer than she.

In her complaint to the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission (PHRC), Craig also alleges that Adams called her a “baboon,” and when she reported his comment to a regional manager, he told her to resolve it with Adams herself. She also recounted how when she called Adams to tell him that she had to care for her sick daughter and couldn’t deliver one day, he allegedly replied: “This is why I will not hire women with children.”

Despite eventually speaking to a Representative from Contractor Relations about the alleged discrimination and harassment, Craig said the mistreatment continued. In October 2006, Craig was injured after being hit by a car while delivering packages. While she was forced to hire her own replacement, she claimed that FedEx hired and paid for a temporary replacement for a white male driver who fell ill during the same time. On November 27, 2006, she filed a discrimination claim with the PHRC. In the claim she wrote,“I want to be treated by Federal Express the way every other driver is treated. I want to pay off my truck and make money without interference, and, as a single mom, to see my children more often.” Days later, FedEx Ground terminated her contract.

Sources:
Annette Craig, personal interview, by Erin Johansson, March 2007. 
Craig v. FedEx Corporation, Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, PHRC Case No.200603793, 20 April 2007.