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LOS ANGELES (CNS) - A Latina is suing the UC Regents, alleging she was forced to resign from her job within the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television in August because she could no longer tolerate an atmosphere of discrimination and harassment allegedly fostered by her boss.
Plaintiff Ana Gonzalez's Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit allegations against include racial and gender harassment and discrimination as well as retaliation. She seeks unspecified damages.
A UCLA representative did not immediately reply to a request for comment on the suit brought Thursday.
Gonzalez was hired in July 2020 by the UC Regents as a director of development at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television and her direct supervisor was Frederick Bush, an assistant dean who is a co-defendant in the case, the suit states.
“Throughout (Gonzalez's) employment, Bush regularly displayed sexist, racist and aggressive behavior directly to (her) as well as other female employees,” the suit alleges.
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Bush preferred hiring minority and/or disabled female employees because he believed he could control them and they would be unable to advance further within in the organization due to their backgrounds and heritage, the suit states.
Bush often told Gonzalez words to the effect that Black donors “are not worth your time because they have no money,” the suit states.
Bush called a female co-worker an “idiot,” “stupid” and “a disaster,” and also said she “can't tell the difference between her contacts and her dry cleaner,” the suit states.
Gonzalez was offended by Bush's alleged statements about others because she is a female and a member of a minority group, the suit states.
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In February, Gonzalez filed several internal complaints after Bush allegedly yelled at her for saying during a Zoom meeting that he should not tokenize the work of a Black woman, the suit states. Gonzalez also filed a police report, the suit states.
“Specifically, (Gonzalez) reported that during the attack, she felt that she was in imminent danger and feared for her life,” according to the suit, which further states she went on leave in April to deal with her psychological stress.
Despite numerous complaints that Gonzalez and several other female colleagues made against Bush, no action was taken to “conduct a bona fide investigation or appropriately discipline Bush,” the suit states.
In addition, Gonzalez's accommodation request to be exempt from having to work with Bush was denied, according to the suit.
Gonzalez, who submitted her resignation letter Aug. 30 stating she could no longer tolerate work conditions at her job, says she has suffered financial losses and emotional distress since being forced to leave her job.