Shareholders Press Shoney’s On Bias Issue
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Shoney’s, the big restaurant chain which settled one of the nation’s largest racial discrimination lawsuits in 1992, is at the center of a debate between large investors and the Securities and Exchange Commission over shareholder resolutions about workplace issues. Three religious organizations’ investment funds, and a union pension fund, have called for a shareholder vote on a proposal at Shoney’s Inc.’s annual meeting in March. The measure, if approved, would require Shoney’s to account publicly for its efforts since 1994 to reverse discriminatory employment and purchasing practices. The Nashville-based chain, whose earnings were walloped after it paid the $103 million settlement, informed the S.E.C. last month of its decision to exclude the proposal from its proxy. ”It’s not a prudent use of our resources to generate this report,” said Betty J. Marshall, a Shoney’s spokeswoman. She said a similar request from the United Methodist Church pension fund was put before Shoney’s shareholders last year and was rejected by 82 percent of those voting. Proponents of the Shoney’s measure say they are trying again because they believe that events at Texaco Inc. underscore why Shoney’s record on race issues is of vital interest to shareholders. Texaco management was forced to cede control of the company’s personnel policies last month as part of a settlement of a racial discrimination lawsuit. More : query.nytimes.com |