Seven former Black employees of Woodgrain, Inc., a global wood products company, have filed a federal lawsuit claiming they were fired after reporting racial slurs and unequal treatment at the Aurora, Colorado plant.
Filed on May 21, the lawsuit alleges a hostile work environment emerged after Woodgrain acquired Trimco Millwork in December 2023 and brought in a new general manager, Steven Nybo. The Idaho-based company generates $900 million annually.
According to the suit, Nybo, who is white, said he wanted to “change the culture” of the plant, which employed mostly Black and Hispanic workers.
Plaintiffs allege this led to replacing experienced Black employees with white workers who had little or no experience. While long-term Black and Hispanic employees earned $20–$21 per hour, white newcomers earned up to $25 per hour.
Plaintiff Robert Simmons, previously with Trimco, returned in April 2024. He later applied for an inside sales position but wasn’t interviewed. Instead, two young white candidates with no experience were hired at higher wages than a Black employee who had been in the role for two years.
Darren Brown, another plaintiff, said he applied for an operations manager position but was never contacted, later learning the company had “lost” his application. The job went to Jay Moore, a white man, who allegedly made derogatory remarks about Black workers.
Moore reportedly told employees, “you motherf—ers can’t count,” and compared them to “monkeys trying to f—k a coconut.” When Corey Tate responded that Moore “sounds like an Alabama slave master,” Moore allegedly replied, “Well, what else would I call you other than monkeys?”
The lawsuit states Tate, Darius Wynn, and Laray Smith immediately requested a meeting with Nybo. During that meeting, Nybo defended Moore’s behavior as a “poor choice of words” and took no disciplinary action.
The employees escalated the issue to HR but received no meaningful response. Instead, they were told the matter had been handled. In December 2024, 21 Black and Hispanic employees signed an open letter describing a culture of racial bias and unequal treatment in pay and promotions. It was sent to management and HR on January 2, 2025.
The next day, HR Director Michelle Bloom issued a letter claiming the complaint was “surprising,” while warning employees against “vindictive gossip” and stating that such behavior could result in termination.
The letter also cautioned against sharing or discussing the open letter and claimed that spreading “false or malicious information” could be considered creating a hostile work environment.
Following this, scrutiny of the plaintiffs increased. Black employees were reprimanded for behavior—like listening to music—that white coworkers were not punished for. A week later, HR began interviews with petition signers, allegedly in the presence of Nybo and Moore, which the plaintiffs saw as an intimidation tactic.
On January 14, Brown emailed management, questioning the delay in the investigation and asking if an independent investigator would be brought in. Bloom responded by discouraging him from including coworkers in emails and emphasizing productivity.
Three days later, Bloom addressed employees at the Aurora plant, saying she had come to “hit the reset button” and warning that those not aligned with the new culture would be “taken care of.” Plaintiffs claim she also warned them against working for Woodgrain’s competitors.
Shortly after, the most senior Black employee, Lamb, was fired without explanation. On January 28, plaintiff Isaac Medlock was terminated after allegedly driving to unauthorized locations—a claim he denies.
The next day, Brown, Smith, Tate, Wynn, and Simmons were fired for being “low performers,” though they had recently received positive reviews. The lawsuit claims the real reason was retaliation for speaking out about racism.
The plaintiffs accuse Woodgrain of violating civil rights laws by subjecting them to racial harassment, unequal pay, limited advancement opportunities, and retaliation. They also say Woodgrain violated Colorado’s non-compete laws by threatening legal action against them if they worked for competitors, despite none earning over the legal threshold of $127,091.
They are seeking a jury trial, compensation for lost wages and emotional distress, and punitive damages.
In its response filed June 25, Woodgrain denied most claims. It admitted Moore made the offensive “monkeys” comment but claimed it had no racial intent. The company denied racially biased hiring, promotion, or pay practices and insisted any terminations were for legitimate business reasons.
Woodgrain also said the Aurora plant was under a standard “cultural improvement program” used at all its locations and denied using race as a factor in any hiring decisions.
A scheduling conference is set for September 3 in Denver before Magistrate Judge Susan Prose.
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