Major League Soccer club Chivas USA has been hit with a second lawsuit by an employee who claims she was discriminated against for not being Latino.
The Daily Breeze newspaper in Torrance, Calif. reports:
Former human resources and administrative manager Cynthia Craig, who is black, said in court papers that she was harassed by team owner Jorge Vergara and team President Jose David because she was not Latino and could not speak Spanish. Craig left the team in July after a period of prolonged harassment, the complaint states.
Two factors add emphasis to the latest lawsuit: First, Craig was a manager in the club's front office. That is in contrast to complainants in the previous lawsuit, who were coaches in the club's youth academy. Coaches are hired and fired all the time, for a variety of reasons.
And second, Craig's job in human resources mean she was in a prime position to observe the questionable employment practices allegedly conducted by the team's top leaders.
Her suit also charges that, starting in January, Chivas hired four coaches from Mexico even though they were not authorized to work in the United States. According to the suit, Craig was told to add the coaches to the payroll but she refused, and team executives instead routed them money through other means.
Vergara also owns the sister club Chivas Guadalajara in Mexico, which is known for it's refusal to sign non-Mexican players. He took control of the MLS club in November 2012.