Barner V. Pilkington North America

In August of 1999, Robert Barner and Nathaniel Hayes, two African-American employees of Pilkington North America, Inc., began an apprenticeship program operated by their employer. They claim that they were denied training opportunities given to similarly situated white employees, and that their supervisor, Frank Zemanski, subjected them to verbal harassment and one instance of physical assault because of their race. In July of 2002, they brought a Title VII race discrimination action against Pilkington and state-law claims of race discrimination, retaliation, and intentional infliction of emotional distress against both Pilkington and Zemanski.