Drivers claim bus company discriminated against them

by Elizabeth Stawicki, Minnesota Public Radio
January 10, 2007

Minneapolis, Minn. — Nine east-African immigrants have filed a discrimination lawsuit in Minneapolis against MV Public Transportation, a national bus company. The immigrants are current and former drivers for MV.

The drivers' attorney, Kelly Jeanetta, says the immigrants were subjected to religious harassment and discrimination.

"Male Muslim employees were all referred to generically as 'Mohammad'; they were forced to listen to loud Christian music played at the workplace; they were denied religious holidays; they were told they couldn't speak their native languages even when they were on break," said Jeanetta.

MV Transportation is a minority-owned company. Spokeswoman Nikki Frenney says because of that, MV has long-established policies against discrimination.

"We regret that this particular set of workplace circumstances has resulted in a lawsuit. However, we intend to vigorously defend the company against these claims in a court of law," said Frenney.
 

link here

 

minnmonlogo

African Immigrants Sue Minority Owned Transportation Company

by: Abdi Aynte

Fri Jan 12, 2007 at 10:35:57 AM


Nine East African immigrants filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against MV Transportation, a minority-owned transportation company, alleging discrimination based on nationality and religion.

Seven of the plaintiffs are Muslims from Somalia and Sudan. The other two are Christians from Ethiopia and Eritrea.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis, alleges that the plaintiffs faced "severe and pervasive harassment and other discrimination on the basis of national origin and religion."

The complaint is chiefly against one manager, Joe Mitchell, who's an African American, who allegedly told the plaintiffs they had no rights as immigrants and that they were earning too much money, all the while banning them of speaking their native languages during work, even on brakes. He also confiscated the prayer rugs of the Muslim employees at least twice and never returned them.

Eight of the plaintiffs work as drivers and the other as a supervisor.

"[Mitchel] used extreme anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim rhetoric," said Meg Luger-Nikoli, an attorney for the immigrants.

The California-based company is the largest "woman and minority owned passenger transportation management firm" in the U.S., according to its website. It has been in business for more than 30 years.

Messages left for the company's spokeswoman were not returned by Thursday. But Nikki Frenney told MPR that they will fight the lawsuit.

Luger-Nikoli says the discrimination was going on for at least a year and half. Six plaintiffs still work there, while the other three say that they were "wrongfully terminated."

Ali Ismail, one of the plaintiffs, who's Somali, alleges that his manager told him and other immigrants that he was thinking of how to replace them with Americans, according to the complaint. His request to attend a naturilization ceremony was turned down by the manager.

The plaintiffs want a judge to award them $75,000 compensatory damages, cover attorney fees and declare that MV Transportation has violated the law. 

 

Link here