STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A Staten Island sanitation worker with a Middle Eastern background claims he was taunted with anti-Islamic barbs -- like "terrorist," "Taliban," "ISIS" and "Osama Bin Laden" -- while working at a borough garbage garage, a new lawsuit alleges.

Michael Femia, 31, was repeatedly harassed by colleagues after revealing he was 13 percent Middle Eastern, and would be greeted with phrases such as, "Did you join the Taliban?" and "Watch out, the leader of the cell is here," according to the complaint recently filed in Brooklyn federal court.

Femia, who is described as an American-born Caucasian in the complaint, is suing the Sanitation Department and its employees, Staten Island Borough Chief Stephen Montanino; Staten Island Deputy Borough Chief Daniel C. Stine, Snow Superintendent Anthony Portello; and District Superintendent Joseph Cocozza, for discrimination.

Femia became a Sanitation worker in 2008 and rose up the ranks to become a Rotating Office Supervisor in 2015, and was earning about $81,000 annually, according to the suit.

The harassment allegedly began when the plaintiff was transferred from Brooklyn to the Staten Island Garage on West Service Road in Travis in January 2016.

A few months later, he told a co-worker he was interested in taking a DNA test to find more information about his ancestry, and that he had Middle-Eastern roots, said the complaint.

The lawsuit alleges Portello overheard the conversation and said, "You're Middle Eastern? We'll see how that works out for you."

That conversation triggered a litany of anti-Islamic rhetoric against Femia.

The plaintiff overheard Stine and Cocozza say Femia was nothing but a terrorist while other supervisors said he was joining ISIS because he was growing out his beard, according to the filing.

Various co-workers would greet Femia with "ISIS is here;" "The Taliban is here;" "Watch out, the leader of the [terrorist] cell is here;" "Did you join the Taliban?" and, "If you see something, say something," which mimicked the MTA's slogan in the aftermath of the September 11th attacks, said the suit.

In April of this year, staffers were given land modems, but a sign-in sheet on the back of a supervisor's door said Femia "was most likely to turn it into a bomb," the complaint said.

The sign stayed on the door until August.

In May, his nameplate on the garage office stated "Ayatollah," referring to a high-ranking Muslim cleric. It was taken down down and later replaced with the same phrase, according to the suit. It also remained in the office until August.

In June, he claims, there was a doctored image of him in a turban, near an ISIS flag.

Femia lodged a series of complaints to his supervisors, including Stine, and filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Office (EEO).

His efforts only led to retaliation against him, including being written up for alleged performance deficiencies and time issues, the filing claims.

For instance, the suit alleges Femia was disciplined for not wearing a department-issued patch on his uniform despite other employees and supervisors not wearing the patch.

"As a result of defendants' actions, plaintiff feels extremely humiliated, degraded, victimized, embarrassed and emotionally distressed," said the complaint.

Femia, who is still employed by the Sanitation Department, could not be reached for comment.

His lawyers declined comment.

A spokesman for the City law department said, "We will review the complaint and the allegations with DSNY and respond accordingly."