By DOUG FEINBERG (AP Basketball Writer)
Dearica Hamby filed a gender discrimination criticism final week in opposition to the WNBA and the Las Vegas Aces, saying her former staff and its coach, Becky Hammon, retaliated in opposition to her after she knowledgeable them she was pregnant.
Hamby filed the criticism with the Nevada Equal Rights Commission and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, in response to a duplicate of the criticism obtained by The Associated Press on Thursday.
The criticism stated that the franchise created an “abusive and hostile” work setting for Hamby final yr earlier than buying and selling her to the Los Angeles Sparks within the offseason. That got here after Hamby informed the staff she was pregnant along with her second baby.
Hamby additionally alleged that Hammon requested the participant if she had deliberate her being pregnant, including that the coach informed her she was “not holding up (her) end of the bargain” after signing a two-year extension final yr.
Hamby additionally stated that the WNBA didn’t correctly examine her allegations. The league had a months-long probe that concluded proper earlier than the season began and suspended Hammon two video games for violating league and staff “respect in the workplace” insurance policies.
“The league conducted a thorough investigation of the allegations and levied appropriate discipline based on its findings,” a WNBA spokesperson stated.
The Washington Post was the primary to report the criticism.
The criticism can be investigated and the EEOC might try and resolve the matter by way of mediation. If mediation fails or if the EEOC doesn’t discover cheap trigger that discrimination or retaliation occurred, it’s going to subject a “right to sue” letter, giving Hamby 90 days to file a lawsuit in federal or state courtroom.
The Aces are on the brink of face New York within the WNBA Finals, which start Sunday. The staff declined touch upon the brand new criticism.
In May, Hammon refuted Hamby’s claims and stated the Aces traded the two-time WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year as a result of it was finest for the staff.
″(Hamby’s being pregnant) wasn’t an issue, and it by no means was why we made the choice,” Hammon stated on the time. “We made the choice to maneuver Hamby as a result of we may get three our bodies in her one contract, and we wished to get three extra folks in. I believe it’s very evident (with) who we signed on why we made the transfer.
Hamby had a productive season with the Sparks taking part in two months after giving beginning to her son. She performed in all 40 video games and averaging 8.9 factors and 5.9 rebounds.
“In the 2020 Collective Bargaining Agreement, player parents gained protections that ensured becoming a parent did not mean the end of a career,” the WNBA Players’ Union stated in a press release. “Obviously, these protections did not change the nature of this business. Any team can trade any player for any reason or no reason at all. But that reason cannot be on the basis of race, gender, sexual orientation, parental status, or pregnancy status.”
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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
Source: www.bostonherald.com”