A longtime employee has sued the National Republican Senatorial Committee, accusing them of creating a hostile work environment before firing him.
Keith Carter, a black man who joined the NRSC in 1995, has charged Republican officials with serial mistreatment of the two African American employees who worked at the committee, according to TheHill.com.
In the suit in D.C. Superior Court on Monday, Carter says he was referred to as “boy” and forced to clean up the feces of dogs white employees had brought to work.
Brian Walsh, a spokesman for the NRSC, calls the charges a baseless claim from an under-performing employee.
“This is an unfortunate action taken by a disgruntled former employee,” said Walsh. “The suit is meritless, and we look forward to its resolution.”
Walsh, however, declined to comment on the specific allegations of the 11-page complaint because the suit is pending.
A termination letter cited Carter’s failure to obey instructions without question or delay, leaving work early and smoking in the basement, thehill.com reports.
Carter, who was hired as a building engineer, claims he was a respected NRSC staff member for nearly a decade and a half. He was given the duties of building manager of the committee’s headquarters and often invited to participate in management meetings.
Carter says that changed in 2009.
“In March 2009, Mr. Carter’s duties and the manner in which he was treated changed dramatically,” his complaint states. He said he was excluded from regular management meetings, stripped of his supervisory responsibility and ordered to perform menial tasks.
He is suing the committee for economic damages “resulting from the loss of his employment and severe emotional pain and suffering.” –terry shropshire
