Former Ford Employee, Fired Over Anti-Gay Remarks, Sues Company
YPSILANTI, Mich., July 14 (UPI) — A former Ford Motor Company engineer filed a lawsuit against the company after being fired for anti-gay comments.
Thomas Banks of Ypsilanti, Michigan is suing Rapid Global Business Solutions in Troy and Ford, who had stationed him at a plant in Dearborn for more than three years. He is seeking an unspecified amount for damages for loss of wages, mental and emotional stress, humiliation and more.
Banks claimed on Friday that his civil rights were violated on Aug. 4, 2014, when he was let go after criticizing Ford’s support of the gay community.
The conflict began in July of 2014, when Banks read an article on the Ford company intranet that supported the transitioning of Ford into a more pro-LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) environment. Banks, who considers himself a Christian, chastised the support as an assault on morality that Ford should not be a part of as it promotes sodomy. He added that the topic of the post was disruptive to the workplace and the antithesis of Ford’s design and survival. Ultimately, he said an automotive company like Ford should not be endorsing or promoting such a cause.
Banks was called to a meeting after posting his comments, where he was informed of the company’s decision to fire him based on his violation of Ford’s anti-harassment policy. Rapid Global Business Solutions fired him on the same grounds.
Prior to the lawsuit, Banks had filed a claim http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/thomas-banks-ford-lawsuit_55a42530e4b0a47ac15d2669 with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), which declined to pursue his case. In testimony before the EEOC, a supervisor from Rapid Global Business Solutions acknowledged Banks’ right to his religious beliefs but added that the tone he took to express them was discriminatory.
In the lawsuit, Banks explains that he respects others and supports an inclusive workplace.
Banks’ ability to use the law to his aid in this case, however, would not be availed to a gay worker in Michigan who is fired. This is because sexual orientation and gender expression are not protected classes under Michigan’s Elliot-Larsen Civil Rights Act. Multiple attempts to amend the law have failed.
Like Us on Facebook for more stories from GephardtDaily.com
