A Winnipeg man is suing Peguis Child and Family Services for wrongful dismissal, alleging he was the target of harassment and intimidation because he is white.

The social worker alleges supervisors and senior staff “mistreat(ed and harass(ed)” him throughout the duration of his nearly two years employment with the agency, ending with his termination last July.

The man, who spoke to the Winnipeg Sunon condition of anonymity, has since found employment with another child welfare agency.

“The whole termination was just a nightmare,” the man said.

In a lawsuit filed last week, the man alleges a senior supervisor intimidated him into allowing her to live rent-free in a condominium he owned.

When the man requested a treaty day holiday, another supervisor said “You took our land, now you want a day off,” the lawsuit alleges.

“The said comment made the plaintiff, who is non-native, very uncomfortable in the presence of other staff, the majority of whom were of first nations ancestry,” says the lawsuit.

Another senior staff member told the man he was “a colonizer and as such was responsible for the crimes committed by other colonizers against the first nations,” says the lawsuit.

The man alleges he was fired without cause and without notice. As a result, he has suffered “emotional upset, shock, embarrassment, depression and mental distress,” says the lawsuit.

The allegations have not been proven in court.

A representative of Peguis CFS could not be reached for comment. A statement of defence has not been filed.