Springfield employee who filed racial discrimination suit had suspensions and a demotion

The Springfield employee at the center of a racial discrimination lawsuit has received two suspensions, a written reprimand and a demotion during his three years working for the city, according to employment records.

Jordan L. Dickerson was hired as a meter reader in May 2016, according to his personnel file, reviewed by the USA TODAY Network-Tennessee.

Dickerson has filed a federal lawsuit against the city, claiming racial discrimination that included verbal abuse, hostility and harassment by his white co-workers. He is seeking $500,000 plus additional punitive damages.

City officials have refused to comment, citing the pending litigation.

Dickerson's lawyer, Nashville-based attorney Stephen Crofford, said Tuesday that he has not yet seen his client's personnel records and couldn't comment on them.

"I will say that incidents Jordan may have reported and investigations into those incidents are not always outlined in the employee files," Crofford said.

Suspensions for hours, not days

As an employee, Dickerson, a Springfield High School graduate who briefly attended Tennessee State University, has received mixed, but mostly satisfactory reviews from his supervisors. 

His two suspensions occurred in January and November 2018.

In the latter incident, Dickerson was suspended without pay for 14 hours after he left a water and wastewater utility truck unattended with the engine running while he went into a convenience store and waited about 15-20 minutes for food, the file said. It also notes that Dickerson couldn’t be reached on his radio and a supervisor had to come inside the store and address the situation.

“He spoke to you at length about the severity and the possibilities that could occur if the truck had been stolen,” reads the disciplinary action report in the file. “You were not cooperative in the discussion with your supervisor and felt that you were being singled out for this incident. … An employee will not be allowed to enter any facility and leave the truck running and unattended at any time.”

The prior January, Dickerson was suspended for a day without pay after three co-workers alerted Springfield Water and Wastewater Director Terry Beers that Dickerson had urinated in a ditch where a water main was exposed and being repaired, the file said.

Dickerson admitted to the action and was “very explicit to why he performed the action,” Beers noted in his report on the matter. He added that the employee had been with the department for about a month and that when questioned, Dickerson said he wasn’t aware of anything wrong with what he’d done.

“The real reason for a severe action such as a suspension is suggested is not just the urination, but the situation to where it occurred and while the water system was exposed,” Beers wrote.

Supervisors recommend extended probation

Twice during his tenure, Dickerson’s supervisors recommended extended probationary periods to further review his performance. The first period, for 60 days, occurred shortly after he was hired, near the end of 2016, the file notes.

Probation was granted, “due to his continued problems with accuracy in reading meters (and) … in the overall daily functions of meter reading,” it reads.

The second probationary period came after Dickerson was demoted and reclassified as a utility worker in December 2017, the file said. His pay was also lowered, and probation lasted for six months.

Other documents found in Dickerson’s employee file include three memos warning Dickerson about his time management and leave balances.

He also received a written reprimand for damaging city equipment, dated July 31, 2017.

During an incident earlier that month, Dickerson had left his handheld on the bumper of his truck, and it fell off as he was driving, the file said. Though damage to the unit was not severe, cleanup and a new case would be needed. 

A supervisor noted that Dickerson was “careless, causing accident,” the file said.

Reach Nicole Young at 615-306-3570 or nyoung@tennessean.com.