United Airlines manager twisted Asian worker’s arm during ‘racist rant,’ lawsuit says
A United Airlines employee feared for his job and safety after a senior manager called him a racial slur and physically assaulted him in front of several co-workers, according to a newly settled federal discrimination lawsuit.
The “racist rant” and assault unfolded at United Airlines’ catering facility next to the Denver International Airport in January 2021, when the company was under a face mask policy during the COVID-19 pandemic, the lawsuit says.
The employee, who’s Asian and was born in Mongolia, and another worker were seen by the manager with their masks down in the facility’s lunchroom as they were throwing away trash after a quick meal, according to a complaint filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
They had removed their masks to eat, which was allowed by the policy, the complaint says.
After the manager told them to put their masks up, they both replied “yes, sir,” according to the complaint.
Then, the manager took issue with the Asian employee and approached him, asking “what did you say, (racial slur)?,” the complaint says.
He got close to the employee’s face and told him he didn’t like his tone while grabbing and twisting the man’s arm to view his United Airlines employee badge, EEOC attorneys wrote in the complaint.
The manager asked if the employee valued his job and publicly berated him, according to the complaint, which says the man worked as transportation agent at the airline’s Denver catering facility.
He then slapped the employee’s back “while stating words to the effect of, ‘Lucky for you, I’m a good guy,’” and walked off, the complaint says.
Now United Airlines has agreed to pay the former employee $99,000 and will take other measures to settle the lawsuit that accused the company of allowing a hostile work environment based on race and national origin, the EEOC said in a Jan. 6 news release.
An airline spokesperson told McClatchy News on Jan. 6 that “after an extensive investigation, the manager in this case was removed from the workplace and is no longer with United.”
“We offered the plaintiff re-employment in 2021, but he declined,” the spokesperson said. “United is pleased that settling this case will avoid protracted litigation for all parties.”
According to the EEOC, United Airlines delayed investigating a complaint the employee made about the manager using a racial slur against him and assaulting him.
The agency said the incident happened “at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when Asian Americans and those of Asian descent experienced public hostility and violence because of their race and/or ethnicity based on a common misconception that Asians caused the virus or pandemic.”
After two weeks, the employee felt he had no other choice but to resign on Jan. 25, 2021 because United Airlines never contacted him about investigating his complaint, which he made to his supervisor immediately after the incident, and never assured him of his physical safety or job security, the complaint says.
Before January 2021, the employee had experienced racial harassment from other United Airlines co-workers, according to the complaint.
After he joined the company many co-workers called him “Chinaman” for about six months in 2019, the complaint says.
United Airlines was accused of violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which makes workplace discrimination and harassment illegal.
An investigation into the incident didn’t begin until Feb. 16, 2021. The manager accused of assaulting and harassing the worker was given a pay raise in April amid the investigation, before he signed a separation agreement with United in July 2021, according to the complaint.
He retired “in lieu of termination,” the complaint says.
Under the consent decree that resolves the lawsuit, United Airlines has also agreed to give the former employee 75,000 flight miles, will review company policies and will send compliance reports to the EEOC, according to the agency.
The airline will change its workplace violence policy by requiring investigations within 72 hours of receiving a workplace violence complaint, the EEOC said.
“Employers must take prompt and effective action to address complaints of a hostile work environment, especially where the complaint includes allegations of physical violence,” EEOC regional attorney Mary Jo O’Neill, of the agency’s Phoenix district office, said in a statement.
This story was originally published January 6, 2025 at 1:18 PM with the headline "United Airlines manager twisted Asian worker’s arm during ‘racist rant,’ lawsuit says."
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