EEOC Sues American Inn Operator for Breaching Conciliation Agreement

PHILADELPHIA—SSN Hotel Management, LLC and SSN Carlisle, LLC, doing business as American Inn Carlisle (collectively American Inn) violated federal law when they repeatedly refused to comply with the terms of a conciliation agreement in a race and retaliation discrimination case, according to a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, the federal agency found reasonable cause to support allegations of race discrimination and retaliation at the American Inn in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Consistent with federal law, the EEOC attempted to resolve the charge via conciliation, prior to filing a federal lawsuit. In August 2024, the EEOC settled the charge through a conciliation agreement which required American Inn to make timely monthly payments to the complainant and take other remedial actions.

However, American Inn failed to make the required monetary payments. When the company ignored EEOC’s warnings of non-compliance, the agency filed suit in federal court to enforce the terms of the conciliation agreement.

The EEOC’s suit (EEOC v. SSN Hotel Management, LLC et al, Civil Action No. 1:25-cv-01491 filed in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania) seeks to compel future compliance with the conciliation agreement and to obtain relief for American Inn’s past and ongoing violations. The EEOC also seeks costs and other appropriate relief for having to bring this action.

“The conciliation process is an opportunity for employers to resolve alleged discrimination without litigation,” said Debra Lawrence, EEOC’s regional attorney in the Philadelphia district office. “The relief required by conciliation agreements is critical to EEOC’s mission to correct and remedy unlawful employment practices, and the agency will not hesitate to enforce the employer’s legal obligations under such agreements. The employer who initially avoids litigation by entering into a conciliation agreement only invites it by failing to then comply with its terms.”

For more information on the EEOC’s conciliation process, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/what-you-should-know-eeoc-conciliation-and-litigation.

The EEOC’s Philadelphia District Office has jurisdiction over Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and parts of New Jersey and Ohio. Attorneys in the Philadelphia District Office also prosecute discrimination cases in Washington, D.C. and parts of Virginia.

The EEOC is the sole federal agency authorized to investigate and litigate against businesses and other private sector employers for violations of federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. For public sector employers, the EEOC shares jurisdiction with the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division; the EEOC is responsible for investigating charges against state and local government employers before referring them to DOJ for potential litigation. The EEOC also is responsible for coordinating the federal government’s employment antidiscrimination effort. More information about the EEOC is available at www.eeoc.gov. Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.