Pharma company hit with racial discrimination lawsuit

Pfizer’s ‘Breakthrough’ programme is aimed at Black, Latino and Native Americans | A healthcare membership organisation filed the complaint.

Pfizer is facing claims that its fellowship programme for Black, Latino and Native American candidates is “racist, divisive and discriminatory”’, in a new lawsuit filed by a group of healthcare professionals.

The organization, Do No Harm, filed the lawsuit at the US District Court for the Southern District of New York on September 15.

According to the lawsuit, Do No Harm is a Virginia-based, nationwide membership organisation consisting of physicians, healthcare professionals, medical students, patients, and policymakers “who want to protect healthcare from radical, divisive, and discriminatory ideologies, including the recent rise in explicit racial discrimination in graduate and postgraduate medical programmes”.

The complaint alleges that Pfizer’s ‘Breakthrough’ programme “categorically excludes” white and Asian-American applicants and is therefore illegal.

“Pfizer is blatantly discriminating against white and Asian-American applicants blocking the creation of contractual relationships solely based on race, in violation of §1981,” said the complaint.

The organisation claimed that it has at least two members who are being harmed by Pfizer’s racially discriminatory programme stipulations, and who are ready and able to apply for the 2023 class if Pfizer “stops discriminating” against white and Asian-American applicants.

The American Civil Rights Project (the “ACR Project) has also demanded that Pfizer retract policies that “discriminate” based on race and sex.

In a media statement released today, September 20, the ACR project stated that: ”Pfizer injects race, ethnicity, and sex into every level of its hiring and promotions, ranging from its summer  internships to its top executives and directors.

“These admitted policies violate state and federal laws, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 1981, and a host of state laws, including those of New York (where Pfizer headquarters) and Delaware (where it incorporated).”

LSIPR has approached Pfizer for comment.

Did you enjoy reading this story?  Sign up to our free daily newsletters and get stories sent like this straight to your inbox.