Hispanic Employee, Like Other Employees, Emails Passwords to Herself and is the Only One Fired.

David ManesLawsuits & Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Employee Files Lawsuit against Santander Bank for Race Discrimination and FMLA Violations

Sonia, a Hispanic woman, joined Santander Bank as a Single Point of Sales Contact in June 2011. Five years later, Sonia was transferred to the Cashier Department of the company under a new boss. This boss was Caucasian, and Sonia noticed that her boss treated her differently than other similarly situated employees, speaking to Sonia in a confrontational voice and belittling her.

Soon after the transfer, Sonia reported the hostility and harassment of her boss to a Human Resources representative. Almost immediately, Sonia shared that her boss’s poor treatment of her intensified. According to Sonia, her boss berated her for allegedly undermining her authority when Sonia sent a work-related question to a coworker via email.

In December 2016, Sonia sought and received FMLA approved leave for bilateral foot surgery. She returned to work at the end of February. In March, Sonia knew she needed to take a mandatory bank compliance course. She, like other employees, sent herself an email with the necessary passwords to complete the course at her work computer at home.

Sonia recalled that three days later her boss pulled her into a meeting and terminated her for sending an email with passwords to herself. Since the other employees who did this weren’t terminated, Sonia believes that she was fired due to her race and FMLA leave. As a client of KM&A, Sonia fights for her employee rights. KM&A challenges employers who terminate employees like Sonia due to race or use of FMLA.

 

Full text of this complaint, as filed with the District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, is available at docket no: 5:18-cv-00645-JLS

Kraemer, Manes & Associates LLC is an employment law firm with principal offices in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, serving all counties in Pennsylvania, focusing on employment law, business law, litigation, and civil issues. KM&A clients include employees, small businesses, parties in litigation, and people with a variety of legal issues.

For more information about this case, contact Attorney Jonathan Chase at 215-475-3504 or at jwc@lawkm.com.

NOTICE: All information contained in this statement comes from the Complaint which has been filed as a public record with the court. As dedicated civil rights attorneys, we strongly believe in the public value of telling our clients’ stories: violators can be held accountable, and other silent victims can feel empowered to stand up for their legal rights. Although we make every attempt to verify our clients’ claims, note that the defendant is expected to oppose our client’s position, and the court has not ruled one way or the other as of the date of this statement.