Dive Brief:
- The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against a construction services company for allegedly allowing harassment of American workers at its Rio Rancho, New Mexico, location and then firing at least one worker for complaining about the harassment, according to a news release.
- Oregon-based Advanced Technology Group, Inc. allegedly permitted two employees to be subjected to “anti-American” slurs by Mexican co-workers. The Mexican colleagues also allegedly stole one of the American worker’s tools and made fun of him for not being able to fluently speak Spanish, EEOC said.
- EEOC said the behavior constituted national origin discrimination and was in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. ATG could not immediately be reached for comment.
Dive Insight:
Under EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas’ leadership, EEOC has focused on “reverse bias” claims against majority-group workers, including White males, as well as national origin discrimination against American workers.
“Discrimination against American workers is unconscionable,” Lucas said in the release. “The EEOC is here to protect all workers from anti-American bias. Nothing justifies illegal national origin discrimination, and we will vigorously enforce federal laws to restore dignity to the American worker.”
The employee whose tools were allegedly taken repeatedly complained to a direct supervisor, who didn’t take action to stop the harassment, EEOC said. He complained to another supervisor and was fired the next day by his direct supervisor for going over his head, the agency said.
In a position statement submitted to EEOC, ATG said the worker was fired for nearly falling asleep at work while supporting a 100-pound beam. The company had a write-up about the incident, but it was not signed by the worker, who denies falling asleep or having any safety violations, EEOC said.
The worker’s termination paperwork lists “other” and “arguing with crews and almost starting a fight” and nothing about a safety violation, per the lawsuit.
“Employers have a legal duty to prevent and stop all harassment based on national origin, including harassment of American workers. Employers are required to investigate any complaints of national origin harassment and to take prompt action to stop the harassment,” Mary Jo O’Neill, regional attorney for EEOC’s Phoenix district office, said in the release.
Many of the workers at the New Mexico site were Mexican and most spoke Spanish, per the lawsuit. While ATG said it required translations for English-speaking workers, employees told EEOC “that directives were rarely translated, and English-speaking workers often did not understand or were excluded from discussions at work.”
The worker in question is a Hispanic American and was born in the U.S., where his family has lived for generations, EEOC said. His co-workers allegedly called him derogatory names daily after he was temporarily promoted, according to court documents.
In its lawsuit, EEOC said the behavior created a hostile work environment for American workers. The agency and ATG were unable to reach an agreement through the conciliation process.
