Shegerian & Associates: Employee Rights Attorney Weighs In On Ex-Employee Fired After Reporting Harassment of Muslim Co-Worker
NEW YORK and LOS ANGELES, Jan. 7, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- HCL is an Indian company based in Sunnyvale, CA, where it employees 15,000 people who specialize in consulting and IT services. A former supervisor, William Garrett, filed suit against HCL earlier last month after being fired weeks following a complaint to higher ups that his Muslim-Pakistani coworker was being harassed.
A lower ranking employee within HCL told Garrett that he was being bullied by a Micron supervisor who was an Indian-Sikh, while out at a get together for HCL employees in April of 2018.
Once Garrett learned of the harassment, he went to his direct manager where he was told to make sure the two employees would not work with one another. This claim came only weeks after the company put on a training to help employees identify and report discrimination and harassment.
Once the Micron supervisor found out about the claim, he intimidated the subordinate employee into recanting the claims of being bullied. Then, Garrett received a call on his way home, letting him know that he was being released "before there were any more problems."
Carney Shegerian, the founder of Los Angeles-based employee rights law firm Shegerian & Associates, has weighed in on the lawsuit.
"Garrett's firing displays the link between retaliation and harassment," Shegerian says. "Furthermore, this lawsuit demonstrates how even those who were not the victims of harassment can become victims of workplace retaliation if they report anything."
Garrett joined HCL in 2010 and found a new, lower paying job at a help desk following his release. He has stated that he still does not understand what he did wrong but moving forward, he will most likely not feel comfortable reporting the harassment of others.
HCL employs people from over 114 different companies, is one of the top users of H-1B visas, and was approved for 4,400 visas in 2017's fiscal year. This lawsuit could point to underlying cultural tensions in Silicon Valley.
About Shegerian & Associates:
Shegerian & Associates has won clients over $200 million in employment-based disputes and maintains a 98% success rate. We have offices in Los Angeles, San Diego, Riverside and New York.
Media Contact:
Pace Public Relations
Caroline Kropke
[email protected]
SOURCE Shegerian & Associates
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