Discrimination suit filed against Houston plant owners

A Houston man says his former employer fired him once because of his ethnicity and a second time in retaliation for a discrimination complaint. 

Cleveland McGuire filed a lawsuit against Mundy Companies Inc. of Houston, doing business as Mundy Maintenance Service & Operations, on Aug. 14 in the Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas.  According to the lawsuit, McGuire is an African-American male who worked for Mundy as a general foreman overseeing maintenance operations at the company's FMC plant. He says he was hired in 2007 and never received a complaint or reprimand. McGuire says he was the "sole black mail in a supervisory role" at the plant. 

On Oct. 9, 2013, McGuire says he was on duty when Mundy employee Terry Price, described in the lawsuit as a white female warehouse worker, questioned him about another employee's use of a "buggy." When McGuire explained that another employee, a black male, was using the buggy, Price allegedly became upset and "began to shout racial slurs." McGuire says numerous employees witnessed the "racially charged discriminatory outburst." 

McGuire says he reported the incident to two Mundy representatives, a shift leader and a superintendent, but says neither took any action. After making the complaint against Price, McGuire says the woman made unsubstantiated claims of sexual harassment against him. 

Rather than initiate a proper investigation into the allegations pursuant to company policy, McGuire contends he was "wrongfully terminated" Oct. 21, 2013. He alleges a white man was hired to fill his position. 

After making numerous complaints to Mundy, McGuire says he was rehired by the company to fill a lower-paying assignment at a different work site.

On Nov. 18, 2013, McGuire says he filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission based on his previous treatment by his employer. On Dec. 16, 2013, McGuire contends the defendant "again retaliated" against him by terminating his employment for a second time. He says Mundy cited a "reduction in force" as a reason for his dismissal but he says he was the most senior employee in the crew. 

McGuire alleges Mundy Maintenance Service & Operations used denial of pay, unwarranted disciplinary action, wrongful termination, threats, intimidation and harassment as a way to deprive him of his rights. He accuses his former employer of racial discrimination, age discrimination and retaliation. He seeks an unspecified amount of money in compensatory and punitive damages for lost wages, lost earnings, mental pain and suffering. 

Attorney Chukwudi Egbuonu, of Houston, represents McGuire. They seek a jury trial. 

The case number is Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas case 4:14-cv-02350.

This is a report on a civil lawsuit filed at the Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas. The details in this report come from an original complaint filed by a plaintiff. Please note that a complaint represents an accusation by a private individual, not the government. It is not an indication of guilt and it represents only one side of the story.