New Jersey employee claims 10 years of racial discrimination

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A New Jersey city worker has claimed he suffered employment discrimination based on his race at his workplace for the last decade. The worker, now age 67, worked in a city's park department for the last 16 years. The worker is Chilean and has lived in the New Jersey area for the last 36 years. During the worker's employment history with the city, he was once an Assistant Recreation Leader. In this position, he was responsible for leading programs. Several years ago, the worker was relocated to a small shed in a New Jersey National Park and he continues to work in the same location. The worker claims he was relocated after intervening in an attempt to stop an alleged sexual harassment issue with a Hispanic worker. The work conditions endured by the employee over the last ten years have prompted his racial discrimination lawsuit against his employer. The employee's lawsuit seeks $3 million in damages based on the claimed racial discrimination exhibited by the employer. The lawsuit claims the employee was passed over for employment opportunities in favor of younger white applicants. In turn, it is claimed the younger white employees discriminated against the employee based on his race and national origin. The examples provided for the discrimination include the employee being forced to work in substandard working conditions, denied privileges that were provided to other employees and denied requested sick leave. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has issued a letter declaring the right to sue after the completion of a commission investigation. The employer refutes the allegations by stating the employee's claims are meritless. Source: East Hampton Patch, "Town Worker Alleges Racial Discrimination, Sues for $3 Million," Taylor K. Vecsey, Sept. 5, 2012