A black former employee at the Washington Square mall Apple store who says managers repeatedly failed to support him -- and ultimately fired him -- after he endured years of racist behavior from customers has filed a $750,000 lawsuit against the technology giant.

In a lawsuit filed last week, Joshua Holt says white customers “constantly asked” if he worked at the Tigard store even though he’d just welcomed them inside; customers referred to him “boy"; and customers would avoid him or ignore him and instead ask for assistance from white employees.

“When Mr. Holt shared these experiences with his co-workers and management, he was often told to ‘assume positive intent’ or that he was overreacting,” the lawsuit says. “Mr. Holt grew increasingly upset and demoralized by Apple not taking his concerns seriously enough to warrant a meaningful response.”

In one instance, Holt’s suit alleges that in January 2018 a white male customer shoved him in the back, but when Holt reported this to managers they “sent him to the back of the store rather than address the customer.” The suit says it was only after that same customer referred to another employee as Asian and used a derogatory name to describe that employee that Apple banished the customer from the store.

Apple, through spokeswoman Rachel Wolf Tulley, declined to comment on the pending litigation.

But the company, with headquarters in the Bay Area, has publicly expressed a devotion to diversity, in part through its hiring efforts. According to one of its web pages, Apple says 53 percent of its new hires are from “historically underrepresented groups in tech,” including “women and people who identify as Black, Hispanic, Native American, or Native Hawaiian & Other Pacific Islander.”

“We know that an inclusive and diverse workforce drives innovation and makes Apple stronger,” reads the web page.

Holt, 32, says in his lawsuit that he was hired at the Apple store at Bridgeport Village in 2011, and he transferred to the downtown Portland store in 2013.

“Mr. Holt thrived in his new role and new location: he was regularly in the top ten rankings based on sales and feedback on a monthly basis,” the suit says.

Then in 2014, he moved to Atlanta to help open an Apple store.

“Almost immediately, Mr. Holt noticed a difference in his work environment,” the suit states. “For example, Black employees wore clothing and styles that reflected Black culture; employees engaged in candid and direct conversations with customers and each other about race, and there were many more people of color in management positions.”

In 2015, he returned to Oregon, was assigned to the Washington Square store and “almost immediately ... noticed hostile treatment based on his race from customers as well as management.” The suit claims that after Holt complained, management told him he was “too negative.”

The suit says the “barrage of racial discrimination took a toll on Mr. Holt,” he took medical leave at times, and his doctor wrote a letter asking that Holt “be transferred back to the downtown Apple store, where there was more staff diversity, managers of color, and customers of color.” The suit says Apple didn’t transfer him.

The suit alleges some managers “told Mr. Holt to work through the interactions himself, as Apple employees are trained to stand up for themselves and call out customers engaging in offensive behavior.”

In December 2018, a white male customer who was interested in buying an Apple watch said he didn’t understand the information Holt had provided him and asked a white employee to help, according to the lawsuit. The suit says after the white employee provided the same explanation that Holt did, the customer said he understood.

“Mr. Holt politely asked, ‘Isn’t that what I just said?’” the suit states. “Mr. Holt explained he was always trying to improve his communications. The customer threw his hand in Mr. Holt’s face. Mr. Holt said to the customer he did not need to be disrespectful. The customer stepped into Mr. Holt’s personal space and threatened him. A coworker intervened. Another coworker asked management to remove the customer, but instead of addressing the customer, management sent Mr. Holt home.”

The suit says Holt was sent home and placed on administrative leave, then was told in March 2019 that he was being fired for violating company policies.

Portland attorney Ashlee Albies, Whitney Stark and Maya Rinta filed the lawsuit in Multnomah County Circuit Court, on behalf of Holt.

-- Aimee Green

agreen@oregonian.com

o_aimee

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