The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Fresno that claims Delano Regional Medical Center discriminated against Filipino employees. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of more than 30 Filipino employees of the hospital who say that they were harassed and discriminated against because of their national origin.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the basis of national origin. The EEOC claims that Delano Regional Medical Center singled out the employees of Filipino origin and treated them differently by not allowing them to speak Tagalog, while allowing other ethnic groups to speak other non-English languages.
According to the Bakersfield Californian, Delano Regional Medical Center’s chief nursing officer said that she did not witness discrimination against the Filipino employees. She said that it was hospital policy for employees to only speak English in patient areas, unless the patient also spoke the other language and it was being used to communicate more effectively with the patient. She said that employees could speak to each other in other languages in break rooms and areas not within patient care.
The EEOC claims that the Filipino workers were subjected to humiliation, intimidation, heightened security and threats of surveillance, and taunting and hostile remarks from co-workers and supervisors. The lawsuit seeks to stop future discrimination and for the hospital to revise policies and practices. It also seeks financial compensation for the employees.
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Delano Regional accused of discrimination (The Bakersfield Californian)