PITTSBURGH — An African American man claims he faced racial discrimination and retaliation while working at Fidelity Flight Simulation in Pittsburgh.
Maurice Thomas filed a complaint June 21 in the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County against Fidelity Flight Simulation Inc., alleging race and disability discrimination and retaliation.
According to his complaint, Thomas began working as an electro-mechanical/electronics tech on Sept. 25, 2014. He alleges that he faced racial discrimination including racial slurs about his appearance, being under "constant surveillance" by co-workers and management and having a wire hung from the ceiling near his desk to represent a noose in January of 2018.
Thomas claims that he reported the incidents to supervisors and was told that "Caucasian people have a different sense of humor" and that he had "misinterpreted" his co-workers' comments. He further claims that by February of 2018, he faced even further harassment and was being reported by his co-workers for "routine things that every employee did at the facility" and that he was assigned less work and was eventually terminated on May 23, 2018 for "lack of work."
Thomas seeks monetary relief of more than $35,000, interest, trial by jury and all other just relief. He is represented by Peter Kobylinski of The Praetorian Law Group LLC in Pittsburgh.
Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County case number GD-21-7113