But Tan Holdings legal counsel, Steven P. Pixley, said the EEOC statement contained “sensational, misleading and deceptive information.”
This is not the first time that Tan Holdings has been taken to court over its labor practices.
The EEOC filed two lawsuits in federal court on Sept. 26, naming as defendants Tan Holdings and its sister firms Concorde Garment Manufacturing Corp., Micro Pacific Inc., Seasonal Inc., and Tan Holdings Overseas Inc.
According to the EEOC, L&T violated federal law by discriminating against an employee based on age and nationality.
The EEOC said an L&T supervisor “constantly subjected an employee to age-related verbal harassment, referring to the worker as ‘old.’ ”
The EEOC said the employee had to endure discriminatory comments related to being a Filipino.
The employee, the EEOC said, was ultimately discharged based on age and national origin.
The second lawsuit also involves Filipino employees who said they were discriminated against based on their nationalities and were unlawfully discharged due to pregnacies.
The EEOC said L&T engaged in a pattern of terminating and/or refusing to renew employment contracts for a class of female employees once they became pregnant.
The company also discriminated against its employees in assignment of overtime, the EEOC said.
It added that the firm continued giving substantial overtime to its Chinese employees while allowing its Filipino employees little or no overtime.
Pixley, in a statement, said that “it is unfortunate that the EEOC has elected to try its case in the court of public opinion by issuing a press release which contains sensational, misleading and deceptive information.”
He said L&T and its sister companies “are proud of their long-standing policy of compliance with the laws that the EEOC is supposed to enforce.”
He added, “We look forward to trying these cases in a court of law. We are confident that once the true facts are presented in court we will prevail.”
Ann Park, EEOC’s regional attorney in Los Angeles, said “regardless of the turbulent economic climate, employers cannot engage in discriminatory conduct”
“It is counterproductive to the economy and also violates federal law,” she added.
Timothy Riera, director of EEOC’s Honolulu office, said “the EEOC will continue to protect and ensure equal employment opportunity for all Americans, regardless of where they work, what they may earn or their employment status.”
The EEOC is responsible for enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination based on race, color, gender, religion, national origin, age, disability and retaliation.
