Discrimination doesn't live here
As the nation continues to reel from the tragic and senseless killing of George Floyd, the subject of racism is being examined and tackled not only as it relates to police misconduct, but in the corporate sphere as well. The vast majority of corporations are engaging in the public dialogue, and pioneering new efforts to combat and eliminate racism and bias internally in their companies, and externally in society. Sadly, however, corporate giants like Enterprise Rent-A-Car Inc., have continued a decades-long practice of discriminating against Black employees and customers, demonstrating that systemic racism and bias is, unfortunately, alive and well.
From 1997 to 2000, I served as a Chief of Staff in the Maryland State Senate while Enterprise-Rent-A-Car Inc. was pushing forward with establishing neighborhood rental car locations throughout the state. However, the only staff of color in these locations were the car washers. No staff of color or women worked at the rental counter, let alone as managers or manager trainees. My Senator and I took Enterprise to task and demanded that they start providing management opportunities for people of color and women. Fast forward to the present, an administrative law judge ordered Enterprise RAC Company of Baltimore LLC to pay out $6,645,444 in lost earnings and benefits to 2,336 African-American applicants for the company's management trainee program. If you factor in interest, plus the cost of giving jobs to applicants they previously rejected, that total climbs to $16.3 million.
This incident is just one in a long list of employment discrimination suits based on race, age, and/or gender involving Enterprise Rent-A-Car. Unfortunately, the discriminatory practices are not just limited to employees. Black customers at the Enterprise location at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport were discriminated against when trying to rent luxury vehicles. Six employees filed a lawsuit in Wayne County Circuit Court detailing how Black customers are treated differently from white customers when trying to rent luxury vehicles. The lawsuit claims that while a Black customer will be told the vehicle is not available, a white customer will be given access. Also, the employees stated there was internal code language used to refer to Black customers from Michigan — they were called “locals.” Employees knew that “locals” meant Black — not just a Michigan resident. Subsequently, Black customers were denied access to luxury vehicles and placed in standard vehicles.
I’m proud to say that Turo boasts a workforce that has representation from around the globe, and through surveys and other efforts, employee feedback is continuously sought. Our host and guest community are incredibly diverse as well, with more than 40% of the community from diverse communities. Additionally, Turo team members monitor the trends in areas like cancellations to determine if there is a pattern of bias. If bias is determined, Turo acts swiftly and will remove hosts from the marketplace. You should be able to book a car and not have to worry about being discriminated against! Here at Turo, we are determined to ensure that discrimination doesn’t live here!
