The Toys “R” Us in a small Washington town is reeling now that the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has sued it for allegedly mistreating sales associate Gregorio Martínez. The suit claims Martínez was passed on for promotions in favor of less qualified candidates, verbally harassed with slurs aimed at his Mexican-ness, and then fired when he complained. (Just goes to show you, it pays to keep your mouth shut.) Oh, and of course, there’s this gem unearthed from court documents:

One supervisor referred to Martinez as “rubbish,” and once told him that he looked dirty and should wash his face, adding, “Oh, that’s just the color of your skin,” the EEOC claims.

To the supervisor’s defense, being dirty and being brown do go hand-in-hand. At least that’s what our teachers used to say.

Business Briefing [Seattle Post-Intelligencer]
Image [Wikipedia]