Carolina Panthers Owner Jerry Richardson Fined $2.75 Million for Workplace Misconduct

Carolina Panthers Owner Jerry Richardson has been fined $2.75 million by the NFL after an investigation “substantiated” workplace misconduct allegations against him. The money will be used “to support organizations addressing race and gender-based issues and fund league-wide workplace training,” the NFL said in a statement. Richardson has already stepped away from the team’s day-to-day operations and is selling the team in a deal that’s set to close in two weeks. The press release did not detail the allegations against Richardson, but the Panthers owner has been accused of sexual harassment by multiple women and using a racial slur. The Panthers organization has developed anti-harassment and discrimination policies and will undergo training, the statement said. An investigator also made recommendations for the NFL as a whole, saying the league should prohibit the use of non-disclosure agreements and create a hotline to confidentially report workplace misconduct. These recommendations will be considered by the NFL’s conduct committee.