A former Ford engineer was recently awarded $16.8 million after a federal jury found the ex-employee had been subject to discrimination based on his Middle Eastern background and was ultimately terminated in retaliation for coming forward with complaints regarding his treatment.
The plaintiff, Faisal Khalaf, holds a PhD in industrial engineering and started working for Ford in 1999. For over a decade Khalaf reportedly worked without issue and even received a “top achiever” rating six months prior to the start of the discriminatory conduct at issue.
Some of the complained of conduct included a high-level executive berating and criticizing Khalaf week after week for his accent. He was also given “demeaning” assignments such as being the executive’s “personal coffee boy” and instructed to take an English as a Second Language class.According to Khalaf’s counsel, a key point of the case occurred when Khalaf instructed one of his subordinate employees to go to Ford HR after the subordinate employee came to Khalaf with complaints of sexual harassment.After recommending the employee go to HR with her complaint, Khalaf was reportedly demoted for complaining.
The case is Khalaf v Ford Motor Company, United States District Court Eastern District of Michigan, Case No 2015-CV-12604.
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