A FedEx delivery driver said in a video posted to TikTok that he wouldn’t deliver to homes with signs showing support for President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, or the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement.
FedEx said that the driver was no longer working for the company, but wouldn’t say whether he quit or was fired. The driver said he quit.
In a video posted September 16, Vincent Paterno said he would also ignore houses that “don’t have a flag in front,” seemingly a reference to the American flag. He would bring packages he didn’t want to deliver “back to the station,” he said.
In a comment on the video, Paterno said: “There’s actually a lot of us doing this but I’m the only one posting.” He didn’t provide any evidence for this.
Some TikTok users said Paterno’s actions could prevent people from getting access to medical deliveries. Paterno replied, “medical supplies have priority no matter who you voted for.”
Paterno was wearing a FedEx polo shirt in the video.
A spokesperson for FedEx told Insider the company was “appalled by the behavior depicted in this video, which does not reflect the views of FedEx.”
“This individual is no longer providing service on behalf of the company,” they said.
Some media outlets reported that FedEx fired Paterno after the TikTok went viral. But in a separate video posted on Sunday, Paterno called this “fake news.” He said that he quit his job, and showed text messages that he claimed were between him and his boss. The texts appeared to show Paterno announcing his plans to quit.
Paterno said that September 16 – the day he posted the initial TikTok video – was his last day at FedEx. “I didn’t know I could get fired when I didn’t work there anymore,” he added.
When asked by Insider whether Paterno quit, the FedEx spokesperson said that the company “[doesn’t] discuss the particulars of personnel matters.” Paterno didn’t immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.
A Minneapolis Home Depot employee who wore a Black Lives Matter logo on his apron and spoke to other workers about racial discrimination was suspended after he refused to remove the logo, according to a labor board complaint.
The Minneapolis branch of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) said in the complaint that the worker started wearing the “BLM” lettering on his apron in August 2020. Sometime this year, the company told the employee to either remove the logo or leave the store, the complaint said. This led to him being suspended, it said.
The Home Depot store then gave the worker an ultimatum: stop wearing the logo or quit, the complaint said. In a statement on August 18, The NLRB accused the hardware giant of constructive discharge because the employee eventually left his job. Home Depot “unlawfully enforced its otherwise lawful dress code” and “threatened employees not to engage in activity regarding racial harassment,” it said.
The unnamed worker had “various conversations with coworkers, supervisors, and managers about subjects such as ongoing discrimination and harassment” at the store in Minneapolis, the complaint said, although it did not provide further details.
Home Depot told Insider that the complaint “misrepresents the relevant facts.”
“The Home Depot does not tolerate workplace harassment of any kind and takes all reports of discrimination or harassment seriously, as we did in this case,” a spokeswoman said.
“We disagree with the characterization of this situation and look forward to sharing the facts during the NLRB’s process,” she said.
While the hardware store’s dress code prohibits displays of “causes or political messages unrelated to workplace matters,” the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) allows workers to bring attention to discrimination they may be facing in the workplace, the NLRB said.
“Issues of racial harassment directly impact the working conditions of employees,” Jennifer Hadsall, NLRB’s regional director in Minneapolis, said in a statement.
“The NLRA protects employees’ rights to raise these issues with the goal of improving their working conditions,” she said.
Many companies were vocal in their support of the Black Lives Matter movement after the murder of George Floyd in May 2020. Craig Menear, Home Depot’s CEO, said in a statement at the time that “we must stand with all who are committed to change that will bring us closer to realizing an end to discrimination and hatred.”
The complaint said that a hearing before an NLRB administrative law judge would happen in October, unless Home Depot and the worker reach a settlement before that.
The NLRB did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.
Many said that the ruling was only the beginning of the fight against institutional racism, and urged more action.
The CEOs of Apple and Dell shared quotes by civil-rights activist Martin Luther King Jr., while Zoom CEO Eric Yuan urged his staff to take care of their mental health.
Chauvin, a Minneapolis police officer at the time, knelt on Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes during an arrest. Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and manslaughter.
Here’s how corporate America responded to Tuesday’s verdict.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
AP Photo/Mark Lennihan
Just minutes after the verdict was announced, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg posted that his thoughts were with Floyd, Floyd’s family, and those who knew him.
He added that the verdict was “part of a bigger struggle against racism and injustice.”
Karl Mondon/Digital First Media/The Mercury News via Getty Images
Apple CEO Tim Cook tweeted a quote from Martin Luther King Jr.: “Justice for Black people will not flow into society merely from court decisions nor from fountains of political oratory.
“Justice for Black people cannot be achieved without radical changes in the structure of our society.”
Dell CEO and founder Michael Dell.
Michael Dell, Dell’s founder and CEO.
David Dee Delgado/Getty Images
Michael Dell, the founder and CEO of Dell, shared a different quote by King.
Melinda Gates, chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Melinda and Bill Gates.
FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP via Getty Images
Melinda Gates, who chairs the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation alongside husband Bill Gates, posted on LinkedIn that the verdict was “just the beginning.”
“As important as it was, this verdict was not justice,” she said. “If George Floyd had justice, he would be alive today.”
The Business Roundtable
Walmart CEO Doug McMillon, who chairs The Business Roundtable.
REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
The Business Roundtable, a group representing the CEOs of top US companies including Walmart, P&G, Dow, and PayPal, urged the country to “take steps to address its long history of racial inequity in law enforcement.”
“Though today’s verdict is a step toward justice in this case, unarmed Black men and women continue to die in encounters with the police,” it said.
General Motors CEO Mary Barra
General Motors CEO Mary Barra.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
General Motors CEO Mary Barra said that the verdict was a “step in the fight against bias and injustice,” but that “we must remain determined to drive meaningful, deliberate change on a broad scale.”
Walgreens Boots Alliance posted statement on its website, saying that law enforcement officials must protect “all of us, at all times.”
People need to “pledge to do everything within our power to ensure that long-overdue, much-needed reforms are enacted to prevent future injustices,” the company said.
“Even with a verdict now handed down, we must never forget what this past year has taught us, and we must always keep alive the memory of George Floyd, and the countless victims who have suffered similar fates,” it said.
“The Centers for Disease Control has declared racism a public health threat, and for many African Americans and others in communities of color, it has definitely been life threatening,” it added.
Microsoft President Brad Smith
Microsoft President Brad Smith.
Reuters
Microsoft President Brad Smith said that “our nation has a long journey ahead before it establishes the justice and equity that Black Americans deserve.”
He added that “no jury can bring him back to life or reverse the pain and trauma experienced by his family and still felt across the country and around the world,” but that the verdict was “a step forward in acknowledging painful truths.”
Salesforce
Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff.
NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images
Salesforce tweeted that though the verdict was a “defining and important moment,” it “does not make up for so much loss and injustice experienced by the Black community.”
“George Floyd should be alive today,” it added.
Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson
Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson.
Starbucks
In a letter to US partners, Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson said that the verdict would “not soothe the intense grief, fatigue and frustration so many of our Black and African American partners are feeling.”
He said that, “while today’s verdict is a step forward in accountability, until we confront the ugly realities and root causes of what led us to this day, our people, our nation, will always fall short of their full potential.”
“We cannot sit on the sidelines as individuals nor as a company,” he added.
Zoom CEO Eric Yuan
Zoom CEO Eric Yuan.
Courtesy of Comparably
Zoom CEO Eric Yuan said that Tuesday was “meaningful in the pursuit of justice, although Black communities continue to experience targeted acts of violence.”
In an note to staff, Zoom told employees to take care of their mental health and reach out to managers if they needed support.
Twitter
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey.
Lucas Jackson/Reuters
Twitter urged people to “continue to deepen our solidarity and our commitment to combating racial injustice.”
Lyft cofounder John Zimmer said that “this year has opened America’s eyes to the urgency with which we must act and stand up for communities of color.”
LinkedIn
LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky.
Kelly Sullivan/Getty Images for LinkedIn
LinkedIn said that “George Floyd should still be with us.”
“Today’s decision is important, but does not bring him back or diminish the acts of violence that the Black community continues to experience,” it added.
A demonstrator is pepper sprayed shortly before being arrested during a Black Lives Matter protest at the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse Wednesday, July 29, 2020, in Portland, Ore.
Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP
Portland police used force 6,000 times against protesters last year, according to DOJ attorneys.
These incidents at times violated department policies and top brass didn’t question it, they said.
Portland became a flashpoint for protest activity and police response after George Floyd’s death.
In late May, after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Portland, Oregon, erupted as a hotbed for protest activity, with demonstrators taking to the streets for more than 100 consecutive days.
It also became a flashpoint for clashes between police and protesters. Demonstrators were at many times peaceful but in some instances engaged in violence and vandalism, while federal and local law enforcement repeatedly used aggressive tactics in response to the protests.
But legal documents filed by attorneys for the Department of Justice last month have started to paint a picture of just how frequently officers turned to force.
Portland Police Bureau officers used force “more than 6,000 times” during “crowd-control events” between May 29 and November 15 – an average of 35 times per day – the attorneys said, summarizing the DOJ’s review of PPB officers’ conduct as part of a previous settlement agreement.
“PPB has failed to maintain substantial compliance with the Agreement’s force-policy requirements,” they said.
PPB did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment on this story.
“Some of this force deviated from force policy, and supervisors frequently validated individual uses of force with little or no discussion of reasonableness of the force used,” the DOJ attorneys said. “Many [after-action reviews] did not include any witness interviews or officer interviews. Many [reviews] contained similar or identical, i.e., cut-and-paste, language.”
The DOJ’s review also found that commands from top brass often didn’t translate effectively to front-line officers, leading to the agency to conclude that in some cases, those officers’ “movements were chaotic and could have been executed better.”
The review also determined that PPB improperly justified its use of force by claiming all members of a protest were engaged in “active aggression” simply by being part of a crowd where some people were being aggressive. In one example, according to the document, an officer justified firing a “less-lethal impact munition” at an individual because they “engaged in ‘furtive conversation’ and ran away.”
The DOJ did acknowledge, however, that officers in Portland faced “substantial challenges” stemming from the wave of protests, which it said often included a “criminal element,” as well as a rise in violent crime across the city and budget cuts that hindered training.
Portland faced a particularly complex blend of protest activity last year, some of which has continued into 2021.
