The ex-CEO who was fired for being a white man gets…

David Duvall, the former director of marketing for Novant Health Care, went to court in 2019. According to him, his resignation in July 2018 had nothing to do with his performance at work, contrary to what Novant said. Company executives have spoken out formally about the lack of leadership skills, but Duvall has challenged it. According to him, the company, a healthcare giant with about 35,000 employees and 15 hospitals, is guilty of “reverse discrimination”.

Just before his five-year anniversary, Duvall was fired to be replaced by two women, a black woman and a white woman. That’s what Duvall’s attorney, Luke Larges, said earlier at the trial. “Both women are fit for the job, but no more than Duvall. And there weren’t any issues with Duvall’s performance.” According to Duvall, the dismissal would be related to diversity motivations.

The court has now ruled in his favour. According to the jury, the company could not prove that Duvall would have been fired had he not been a white man. After Duvall’s departure, a few white executives had to leave the field: within a year and a half they had all been replaced by black people or women.

Novant is frustrated with the judgement. A spokeswoman said she wanted to explore all open legal avenues. So Duval better put his ten million. Novant spokeswoman Megan Rivers said an appeal is also possible.