A Buford seafood wholesaler will pay $265,000 to settle a federal lawsuit alleging it blocked qualified women from warehouse jobs. The agreement also places the company under a two-year set of workplace requirements aimed at preventing similar discrimination.
Moon N Sea GA LLC, formerly known as KGI Trading GA Inc., and related business partners agreed to the settlement, according to Atlanta Daily World. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said at least 19 women applied for warehouse associate positions at the Buford facility since July 2022 but were passed over because they were women.
The allegations centered on blunt assumptions about physical work: Applicants were reportedly told the company preferred hiring men because men could lift more weight. The EEOC also alleged that fully qualified female applicants were rejected in favor of less qualified male applicants, as outlined in the agency's original lawsuit announcement.
Settlement Requires Training And Two Years Of Oversight
In addition to the monetary relief, the consent decree requires KGI Trading to provide specialized training on Title VII's prohibition against sex discrimination, submit compliance reports to the EEOC and post a workplace notice about the settlement and employees' rights for two years. The terms were detailed in Atlanta Daily World's report on the agreement.
EEOC Atlanta District Director Darrell Graham said the agency commended KGI for agreeing to safeguards designed to prevent future discrimination. The agency's Atlanta office handles discrimination charges and litigation in Georgia, along with portions of South Carolina.
Marcus G. Keegan, regional attorney for the EEOC's Atlanta District Office, said qualified women should not be shut out of jobs involving manual labor because of their sex. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 bars employers from making hiring decisions based on sex, the EEOC said.
Case Began With 2025 Federal Filing
The EEOC filed the lawsuit in September 2025 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia's Atlanta Division. The settlement resolves the case after the agency alleged that hiring practices at the Buford warehouse violated federal anti-discrimination law.
The agreement does not turn warehouse work into a weightlifting competition; it requires employers to evaluate applicants based on qualifications and job requirements rather than gender stereotypes. For KGI Trading, the next two years will include training, reporting and a workplace notice that keeps the case from disappearing into the paperwork pile.
