Late last night, two regional television stations posted their reports online about a class action lawsuit filed against Springfield City Hall yesterday on behalf of eight city employees.
In speaking to a 22News reporter, Springfield-based attorney Devin Moriarty described plaintiffs on the job being instructed not to speak Spanish in the office, whether casually amongst others, or more formally, for the purposes of translating for city residents in person. They have apparently told of being put in the awkward position of having to ask a superior if they may, indeed, translate.
Moriarty said that his clients claim that some of the city’s policies and higher-up decision-makers are prejudiced, and it has impaired their ability to advance in their jobs, both subtly and overtly.
The plaintiffs are:
Thomas Belton (Personnel)
Luis Colon (Community Development)
Ivette Cruz (Housing and Neighborhood Services)
Joselyn DeJesus (Housing and Neighborhood Services)
Jacqueline Ford (Treasurer’s Office)
Juan Martinez (Code Enforcement)
Andrea Stone (Law Department)
Gail Walls (Personnel)
Maybe the city will be looking at a settlement on this. Where will the cash come from—canceling the November election?
As Michaelann Bewsee points out in her blog, plaintiff Thomas Belton appears to be the same person Mayor Charles Ryan cited on Monday as the leader for an anticipated sensitivity training for those city employees under the executive authority of the mayor’s office (police, fire fighters, and DPW). Other employees, the Republican reported, whose positions were established by state statute, do not fall under the authority of the mayor’s office for such a policy to be implemented (i.e. the School Department, the Springfield Water and Sewer Commission, the Springfield Parking Authority, Housing and Neighborhood Services, and the Springfield Redevelopment Authority).
