Hotel worker is fired over being gay and his ‘feminine’ style, feds say. Company sued
A man lost his job at an Alabama hotel hours after his bosses learned he’s gay and saw him dressed in a style they felt was “feminine,” according to a federal agency that protects workers from discrimination.
Harmony Hospitality LLC, which runs a Home2 Suites by Hilton hotel in Dothan, fired the man for his sexual orientation, gender identity and for not fitting “management’s preferred appearance for male employees,” the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity said in a June 13 news release.
While working as a night auditor at the hotel, the man “styled himself in conformity with male gender stereotypes,” a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission says.
In February 2022, one of the hotel’s co-owners took issue with how he dressed when the man arrived at the hotel for a meeting that wasn’t during his work hours, according to a complaint filed June 13.
After seeing the man wearing capri-cut joggers, pink nail polish and box braids, the co-owner told the man’s supervisor to make him change his hairstyle, the complaint says.
The supervisor “refused,” as she felt this could discriminate against the employee’s gender identity, according to the complaint, which says the worker identifies as a nonbinary man.
That’s when the co-owner said the man “needed to be ‘hidden’ working nights because of his appearance,” the complaint says.
Shortly afterward, the company’s other co-owner learned about the man’s gender identity and that he’s gay from the supervisor, according to the complaint.
About seven hours later, this co-owner fired the employee in a text message, the complaint says.
Now the EEOC is suing Harmony Hospitality LLC for sex discrimination, the agency announced.
The company didn’t immediately respond to McClatchy News’ request for comment on June 17.
“Federal law guarantees all employees equal employment opportunity regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity,” Marsha Rucker, a regional attorney for the EEOC’s Birmingham District, said in a statement.
Harmony Hospitality is accused of violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 — along with a second company based in the Chicago area, the EEOC said.
Employee is harassed, mocked over sexual orientation
The EEOC is suing another business, LAS Hardwoods, over the verbal and physical harassment of a sales associate in Elmhurst, Illinois, from July 2020 to February 2022.
While working for the flooring company, the employee was asked “if he was ‘gay,’ if he ‘liked boys,’” and was mocked “for having a ‘boyfriend,’” according to a lawsuit filed by the EEOC.
At work, he was regularly mocked for his “feminine” appearance, mannerisms, was called “gay” and slurs related to his sexual orientation, a complaint filed June 13 says.
This would often happen in front of customers, according to the complaint.
On one occasion, someone tied the employee to a chair, wrote “I am Gaylord” on his chest and spun him around — “mocking him while taking pictures and videos, and then leaving him alone and tied to the chair until he was able to free himself,” the complaint says.
LAS Hardwoods didn’t address the hostile work environment or the employee’s complaints about the harassment he faced from his co-workers and managers, the EEOC said in the release.
The company didn’t immediately respond to McClatchy News’ request for comment.
“During this Pride month, we want workers to know that they should be able to work in any job without fear of being harassed or fired because of who they are or who they love,” EEOC General Counsel Karla Gilbride said in a statement.
The lawsuits against LAS Hardwoods and Harmony Hospitality were filed after the EEOC said it tried to reach pre-litigation settlements with both companies.
This story was originally published June 17, 2024 at 8:15 AM with the headline "Hotel worker is fired over being gay and his ‘feminine’ style, feds say. Company sued."
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