Not only did a Hollywood company tolerate their supervisors using racist and ethnic slursaajili, an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission federal lawsuit said, but it eventually fired the biracial Hispanic employee who complained about such insults.
The EEOC lawsuit filed in Fort Lauderdale federal court points the finger at Wholesale Building Produts, Colt Truck Care and Trebor USA, three connected entities. Trebor makes doors, windows, hardware and accessories. Wholesale sells and distributes building materials. Colt services Trebor and Wholesale’s trucks.
State records list Jocelyn Vinet as the President/CEO for Trebor and Wholesale, a manger of Colt. Another Colt manager, Seth Denny, is mentioned prominently in the lawsuit. A phone message left by the Miami Herald at Wholesale Building Products for Denny and Vinet was not returned.
READ MORE: A Florida attorney denied his sexual texts to a juvenile court client. She had receipts
Working WholesaleThe lawsuit said Rafael Pintos “identifies as biracial” and his people come from Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. He’d trained as a mechanic while in the U.S. Army and had been a diesel mechanic for four years before being hired by Colt Truck Care in late 2022. The job, the lawsuit said, required only six months of experience and two years of technical education or equivalentexperience.
Pintos had interviewed with shop foreman Adam Blouin, nicknamed “Doug,” and Blouin would be Pintos’ supervisor. He also would be, the lawsuit said, the one who fired racial and ethnic slurs at Hispanic and Black employees. Sometimes, the slurs would be preceded by “lazy,” sometimes, they would be succeeded by “work.”
“When he was cleaning up from work, Blouin told [Pintos], “You’re taking a Puerto Rican shower!” the lawsuit said. “CTC manager and co-owner Seth Denny overheard the comment and laughed with Blouin about it.”
Blouin also, the lawsuit said, referred to Pintos with derogatory names for women and “forced Pintos to do more dangerous and more menial work than white employees, such as removing tires with open flames and aerosols, and, also, cleaning up messes.”
The lawsuit said Pintos expressed his displeasure about this treatment to Denny on Feb. 3, 2023, then, four days later, to Carolina Tamboles, the three companies’ human resources officer.
“During this meeting, Tamboles called in Denny, and they both said that Blouinhad a prior history of engaging in this kind of conduct toward other employees,” the lawsuit said. “In fact, Blouin had received a prior disciplinary notice for making “racist comments” and using derogatory names.”
After Tamboles interviewed Pintos and Blouin, she issued Blouin a verbal warning.
“Following the investigation, Blouin would scream and threaten Pintos, saying he was a “dead man” and would regret reporting him,” said the lawsuit, which also said Blouin continued to use an ethnic slur for Hispanics when referring to Pintos.
Pintos told Tamboles and Denny about this, the lawsuit said, “However, no additional investigation or corrective action took place. Approximately one week later, on Feb. 18, 2023, (Colt and Wholesale’s) Vice President, Emilie Vinet, called Pintos and fired him. Vinet told Mr. Pintos he was being fired because he lacked the requisite experience.”
This story was originally published October 6aajili, 2024, 3:49 PM.