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Convenience store chain with hundreds of outlets in 6 states hit with discrimination lawsuit

Published

2 years ago

April 19, 2024

Convenience store chain with hundreds of outlets in 6 states hit with discrimination lawsuit

The Sheetz convenience store chain has been hit with a lawsuit by federal officials who allege the company discriminated against minority job applicants.

Sheetz Inc., which operates more than 700 stores in six states, discriminated against Black, Native American and multiracial job seekers by automatically weeding out applicants whom the company deemed to have failed a criminal background check, according to U.S. officials.

President Joe Biden stopped by a Sheetz for snacks this week while campaigning in Pennsylvania.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed suit in Baltimore against Altoona, Pennsylvania-based Sheetz and two subsidary companies, alleging the chain’s longstanding hiring practices have a disproportionate impact on minority applicants and thus run afoul of federal civil rights law.

Sheetz said Thursday that it “does not tolerate discrimination of any kind.”

“Diversity and inclusion are essential parts of who we are. We take these allegations seriously. We have attempted to work with the EEOC for nearly eight years to find common ground and resolve this dispute,” company spokesperson Nick Ruffner said in a statement.

The privately held, family-run company has more than 23,000 employees and operates convenience stores and gas stations in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, Ohio and North Carolina.

The lawsuit was filed in federal court on Wednesday, the day Biden stopped at a Sheetz market on a western Pennsylvania campaign swing, buying snacks, posing for photos and chatting up patrons and employees.

Federal officials said they do not allege Sheetz was motivated by racial animus, but take issue with the way the chain uses criminal background checks to screen job seekers. The company was sued under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits workplace discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion and national origin.

“Federal law mandates that employment practices causing a disparate impact because of race or other protected classifications must be shown by the employer to be necessary to ensure the safe and efficient performance of the particular jobs at issue,” EEOC attorney Debra M. Lawrence said in a statement.

“Even when such necessity is proven, the practice remains unlawful if there is an alternative practice available that is comparably effective in achieving the employer’s goals but causes less discriminatory effect,” Lawrence said.

It wasn’t immediately clear how many job applicants have been affected, but the agency said Sheetz’s unlawful hiring practices date to at least 2015.

The EEOC, an independent agency that enforces federal laws against workplace discrimination, is seeking to force Sheetz to offer jobs to applicants who were unlawfully denied employment and to provide back pay, retroactive seniority and other benefits.

The EEOC began its probe of the convenience store chain after two job applicants filed complaints alleging employment discrimination.

The agency found that Black job applicants were deemed to have failed the company’s criminal history screening and were denied employment at a rate of 14.5%, while multiracial job seekers were turned away 13.5% of the time and Native Americans were denied at a rate of 13%.

By contrast, fewer than 8% of white applicants were refused employment because of a failed criminal background check, the EEOC’s lawsuit said.

The EEOC notified Sheetz in 2022 that it was likely violating civil rights law, but the agency said its efforts to mediate a settlement failed, prompting this week’s lawsuit.

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Concert promoter Live Nation settles US monopoly case over ticket sales

Published

1 hour ago

March 9, 2026

Press Room

Concert promoter Live Nation settles US monopoly case over ticket sales

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Live Nation has agreed to a preliminary settlement with the US government to end a monopoly case brought by the Department of Justice, in a deal that would stop short of breaking up the company.

The DoJ and some US states have reached a deal with Live Nation, which is the parent company of Ticketmaster, less than a week after trial began in New York, according to a senior justice department official. But 27 other state attorneys-general have refused to join the agreement, arguing it benefits Live Nation.

The DoJ in 2024 sued Live Nation, accusing it of operating a monopoly that “suffocates its competition” in the live entertainment industry. The government alleged that the company illegally dominated the market for ticketing and concert promotion, using “exclusionary conduct” to wield an outsized influence over the majority of live concert venues across the US.

The lawsuit came amid growing discontent among fans, rivals, artists and US lawmakers, who have accused Live Nation of abusing its market power by charging exorbitant fees and retaliating against venues that choose to work with rivals.

It followed a fiasco during the ticket sale of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in 2022, when Ticketmaster’s website was overwhelmed by massive demand.

The terms of the deal, which will have to be confirmed by a federal court, include Live Nation offering a product that will allow other ticketing companies to use its technology. It would also let go of 13 amphitheatres it owns or controls — a number that may rise if other states join the agreement.

The deal “opens up markets for other competitors, which will allow for competition that previously didn’t exist in primary ticketing and in the live entertainment space”, said a senior DoJ official.

“That competition is going to have a direct impact on prices coming down,” he added. “It’ll also give consumers more options and not feel like they just have to go through Live Nation or Ticketmaster.”

But New York state attorney-general Letitia James, who has led a bipartisan group of states suing Live Nation, on Monday said in a statement that the agreement “fails to address the monopoly at the center of this case, and would benefit Live Nation at the expense of consumers. We cannot agree to it.”

“[W]e will continue our lawsuit to protect consumers and restore fair competition to the live entertainment industry,” she added.

Live Nation did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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Warrants served in New Jersey, Pennsylvania as feds look into possible NYC terrorism

Published

2 hours ago

March 9, 2026

Press Room

Warrants served in New Jersey, Pennsylvania as feds look into possible NYC terrorism

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New York Police Department Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Monday that the case involving two men accused of throwing improvised explosive devices near Gracie Mansion is being investigated as an “act of ISIS-inspired terrorism.”

Speaking during a press conference alongside Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Tisch said the suspects, Amir Balat and Ibrahim Kayumi, will be prosecuted in federal court in Manhattan.

She said a criminal complaint outlining the charges and factual allegations is expected to be made public later Monday.

Tisch declined to discuss specific details of the ongoing investigation, citing the pending federal prosecution, but confirmed that authorities are treating the case as terrorism-related.

The announcement comes after Fox News previously reported that federal agents served search warrants in New Jersey and Pennsylvania tied to explosive devices thrown during a protest in New York City.

A New York Police Department source told Fox News that devices hurled into the crowd were packed with nuts, bolts and screws, and contained a chemical substance inside a taped canister fitted with a fuse.

Balat and Kayumi, who were arrested on Saturday, remained in custody as federal teams searched their homes in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, according to federal sources.

Investigators also executed a warrant at a related address in New Jersey.

NYPD Bomb Squad officers search a car on March 8, 2026, in New York City. (Ryan Murphy/Getty)

Other federal sources told Fox News on Monday morning that a “terror investigation” is now underway after confirmed improvised explosive devices and a suspicious device were discovered near Gracie Mansion over the weekend.

Sources said the two suspects, Balat and Kayumi, allegedly made pro-ISIS statements while in custody.

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Investigators are also examining their past travel, including trips to Turkey and potentially other locations known as terror training grounds.

This is a developing story; check back for updates.

Ashley Carnahan is a writer at Fox News Digital.

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Video: Airports Struggle to Staff T.S.A. During Partial Government Shutdown

Published

11 hours ago

March 9, 2026

Press Room

Video: Airports Struggle to Staff T.S.A. During Partial Government Shutdown

new video loaded: Airports Struggle to Staff T.S.A. During Partial Government Shutdown

Screening delays come as spring break travel is ramping up and as Transportation Security Administration workers are going without pay for the second time in six months because of the partial government shutdown.

March 8, 2026