FRESNO – A Kern County resident alleges he was subjected to a hostile work environment by his former employer because of his ethnicity.
Yousef Abou Harb filed a complaint on March 23 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California against Downs North Bakersfield Inc. alleging hostile work environment, retaliation and other counts.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff was employed by the defendant from 2014 until 2016 at North Bakersfield Toyota. The suit states the plaintiff is a resident of Kern County and was born in Saudi Arabia.
The plaintiff alleges he was harassed by co-workers and reported the harassment three times to human resources to no avail. He alleges he was forced to resign his job by the defendant to work for another dealership.
The plaintiff holds Downs North Bakersfield Inc. responsible because the defendant allegedly created a hostile work environment for plaintiff based on his Arab ethnicity and created a hostile work environment for plaintiff with a reckless disregard for his federally protected rights.
The plaintiff seeks economic and punitive damages, injunctive relief, attorney's fees and costs and further relief as the court deems just. He is represented by Randy Rumph in Bakersfield.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California case number 1:18-cv-00403