Another Black Employee Sues IBM Over Firing Allegedly Due to Anti-DEI Bias

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• In Brooks v. International Business Machines Corp., the plaintiff alleged that at the time of her termination, she served as vice president of IBM Z Data and AI. She claimed she was one of three Black vice presidents in her division, all of whom were laid off in February 2025, and one of seven Black executives, five of whom were laid off. This allegedly resulted in the largest number of Black execs being removed at one time during her 26 years with the company, according to the lawsuit.
• The plaintiff sued IBM for violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. As evidence her termination was a pretext for race discrimination, she alleged her supervisor initially told her that her role had been eliminated and she was being terminated due to a workforce reduction, but then announced that one of her direct reports, a person of South Asian descent, was taking her place.

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Additionally, the executive in Brooks alleged that the general manager of her division was South Asian and “conspicuous[ly]” preferred South Asian employees, such as by approving a 100% bonus payout and generous stock award for one of her direct reports with documented performance issues, a payout and an award that was significantly more than she received.

As IBM faces complaints of alleged anti-DEI bias against Black employees, it has also had to defend allegations that its DEI programs discriminated against White workers.

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