Menlo College President Accused Of Retaliation

It may be hard to believe that racism in the workplace is still a deciding factor for many employees’ ability to work; after all, this is 2013, and we should be more enlightened, right? Sadly, racial discrimination suits are anything but uncommon in the state of California, with another civil case making an appearance against Menlo College this month. A former executive at the college is seeking financial compensation for retaliation, unfair business practices and racial discrimination in connection with his departure from the school.

The man alleges that he was targeted in 2011 when his supervisor was promoted to the president’s position at the school. The victim in this case was the chief financial officer at the school. He revealed financial mismanagement that was occurring under the new administration’s watch, including inappropriate use of federal aid money and false reporting on tax forms. The man alleges that his performance reviews, which had been “above average,” suddenly dropped, and his position was subsequently stripped of its prestige and pay. Instead, the president and a new vice president proposed that the man serve as a “budget director,” which paid significantly less than his existing job. When the man refused to be demoted, he was fired.

Before the man ever accepted the CFO position, he said his supervisor made racially charged comments during recruiting meetings. The supervisor insinuated that he was hiring the victim simply because of his race. He said Filipino workers tended to be more loyal than other populations, according to courtroom documents.

The man alleges that the president of the school was angry because his employee did not follow his racial stereotypes for Filipinos. In addition, the man’s job was eliminated because he chose to report federal financial violations as mandated by law. Menlo College representatives deny all allegations related to the claim, calling the suit baseless. It is not clear how much money the man is seeking in connection with the violations.

Source:
www.mercurynews.com, “Suit accuses Menlo College of racism and retaliation in firing CFO” Bonnie Eslinger, Sep. 11, 2013