The NAACP on Nov. 1 joined a federal lawsuit filed last year alleging drug maker Eli Lilly & Co. of racial discrimination. Plaintiffs charge Lilly discriminated against black employees in pay, ratings, promotions and discipline. They say Lilly retaliated against those who complained.

In what the complaint calls “a discouraging trend,” the company would allegedly hire African-Americans, but “they never lasted long with the company and were 'coached' out or encouraged to resign rather than face termination.”

The complaint also describes a “company culture that favors conformity with the majority, white culture.”

“This is a pattern that's going on at the company, and it's a pattern that's got to stop,” plaintiffs' attorney Joshua Rose said at a press conference.

The suit, originally filed in April 2006 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, currently has more than 50 plaintiffs, but according to court documents those plaintiffs believe “well over 1,000 African-American employees of Lilly” have been subjected to racial discrimination.

The plaintiffs are currently seeking class action status to include hundreds of current and former Lilly employees in the suit, Rose said.

The NAACP on Nov. 1 joined a federal lawsuit filed last year alleging drug maker Eli Lilly & Co. of racial discrimination. Plaintiffs charge Lilly discriminated against black employees in pay, ratings, promotions and discipline. They say Lilly retaliated against those who complained.

In what the complaint calls “a discouraging trend,” the company would allegedly hire African-Americans, but “they never lasted long with the company and were 'coached' out or encouraged to resign rather than face termination.”

The complaint also describes a “company culture that favors conformity with the majority, white culture.”

“This is a pattern that's going on at the company, and it's a pattern that's got to stop,” plaintiffs' attorney Joshua Rose said at a press conference.

The suit, originally filed in April 2006 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, currently has more than 50 plaintiffs, but according to court documents those plaintiffs believe “well over 1,000 African-American employees of Lilly” have been subjected to racial discrimination.

The plaintiffs are currently seeking class action status to include hundreds of current and former Lilly employees in the suit, Rose said.