PHILADELPHIA — An Asian American alleges he faced racial and age discrimination and was fired by the University of Pennsylvania.
Yieng Him filed a complaint Jan. 20 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against The University of Pennsylvania alleging civil rights violations.
Him, an Asian American, worked for the University of Pennsylvania for 20 years, according to his suit. He alleges that during the last two years of his employment, his new supervisor, who was a white male, discriminated against him and that he faced a hostile work environment and retaliation.
Him claims the discrimination included his supervisor stating that "I haven't worked with (racial slur) like you before," falsely writing him up for poor performance and making it difficult to perform his job duties. He also claims younger employees were given preferential treatment and better assignments and that he was replaced by a younger worker.
Him alleges that after filing a complaint with the Pennsylvania Human Rights Commission (PHRC), he was terminated on March 31, 2021.
Him seeks monetary and all other just relief. He is represented by Andrew Lacy, Jr., of The Lacy Employment Law Firm LLC in Philadelphia.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern Disrict of Pennsylvania case number 2:22-CV-00246-PBT