Gabriel Booker has filed a civil rights complaint against Holtec Manufacturing Division, Inc., doing business as Holtec International. The complaint was filed by Mr. Booker on May 31, 2024, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, accusing Holtec of racial discrimination.
Mr. Booker, an African-American male and former employee of Holtec, alleges that he was subjected to discriminatory practices regarding the company's attendance point system. He began his employment with Holtec in 2022 as a welder and claims that despite performing his job satisfactorily, he faced unjust scrutiny compared to his Caucasian colleagues. According to the complaint, Holtec's point system is used to monitor employee attendance rigorously. Points are assigned for various infractions such as calling off without sufficient leave or arriving late. Accumulating seven points results in immediate termination under company policy.
The crux of Mr. Booker's allegations centers around the assertion that this policy was selectively enforced against African-American employees while similarly situated Caucasian employees were treated more leniently. For instance, Mr. Booker notes that two Caucasian employees, Bryan Sabota and Darren Hess, accrued more than seven points without facing any disciplinary action. Specifically, Mr. Hess reportedly accumulated fourteen points without repercussions and consistently arrived late twice a week without receiving any points for tardiness.
In June 2023, Mr. Booker noticed from the bulletin board at work that he had five points recorded against him and took a day off expecting his total to rise to six points. However, on June 23, 2023, Human Resources Representative Gina Deems informed him that he had accumulated seven points and terminated his employment immediately. Mr. Booker contends that his supervisor altered his point total unfairly and that he did not receive any prior warning before termination as required by company policy.
Mr. Booker's lawsuit claims violations under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866 along with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act (PHRA). He argues that white employees with similar or worse attendance records were not disciplined or terminated like their African-American counterparts.
The plaintiff seeks compensatory damages for lost wages and benefits along with emotional distress and loss of reputation among other harms suffered due to what he describes as intentional racial discrimination by Holtec International. Additionally, punitive damages are sought due to what is characterized as wanton and willful actions by the defendant.
Representing Gabriel Booker is Joshua P. Ward from J.P Ward & Associates LLC.