Three longtime human-resources staffers from Tacoma have taken the Washington State Department of Commerce to federal court, accusing the agency’s top HR brass of discrimination, retaliation and creating a workplace so hostile it drove them from their jobs. The lawsuit says the alleged treatment damaged the women’s careers and health and asks a judge to step in with meaningful relief.
What The Filing Shows
According to federal court records, the case landed in U.S. District Court in Tacoma on May 4. The complaint lists Amanda L. Davis, Catherine M. George and Nicole M. Rivera as plaintiffs and names the Washington State Department of Commerce and several state officials as defendants, per the docket on Justia Dockets & Filings. The court has classified the matter as a federal civil-rights employment action.
Commerce Leadership And Staffing
Commerce’s own executive leadership page currently shows the chief human resources officer slot as empty, a visible sign of churn in the agency’s HR ranks. The directory labels the CHRO position “Vacant,” according to the Washington State Department of Commerce. That vacancy comes as the department is already dealing with other personnel lawsuits and internal complaints.
Allegations In The Complaint
The suit says all three plaintiffs are over 40 and contends they were subjected to harsher scrutiny and shut out of key meetings while white male HR employees were treated differently. According to the filing, the behavior escalated after the women raised concerns about what they saw as unequal treatment.
Among the specific allegations: the complaint states that a deputy HR director mocked Amanda Davis in a September 2025 meeting by “squinting her eyes,” that Catherine George was placed on a performance-improvement plan in October 2023 and later terminated, and that Nicole Rivera was investigated after she participated as a witness in an internal inquiry. These and other details from the lawsuit were reported by The Olympian.
Who Is Representing The Plaintiffs
Tacoma attorney Richard H. Wooster is representing the three women. His firm’s profile highlights his decades of experience handling employment and civil-rights cases, including litigation involving state workplaces, according to Kram & Wooster. In public comments, Wooster has argued that the women were targeted for speaking up and said, “A good Human Resources department is like Switzerland,” adding that HR should both support management and push back when managers cross the line, as reported by The Olympian.
Next Steps And Context
The plaintiffs are asking the court for damages along with institutional changes meant to address the harms they describe. The new lawsuit arrives on top of a separate employment case that put a spotlight on Commerce late last year, keeping the agency’s internal culture under scrutiny.
The case will now move through the Western District of Washington’s federal docket, with upcoming filings, deadlines and orders available through the court’s electronic system and public sites such as Justia Dockets & Filings, where the matter is listed.
