Black Employee Accuses Broten Garage Door Sales of Discrimination, Unlawful Pay Practices

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A former employee of Broten Garage Door Sales, LLC has filed suit against the company and an individual with control of the business claiming the parties failed to pay him proper overtime wages and discriminated against him based on his race. The plaintiff says he worked for the defendants’ garage door company as an installer/service technician between October 2007 and November 2017 without receiving overtime pay for the hours he worked above 40 each week. He claims he is owed $101,925 in unpaid overtime wages.

According to the suit, the plaintiff and other black employees were required to use a portable toilet outside their building while non-black employees were permitted to use the indoor, air-conditioned restrooms. The plaintiff further alleges that though he was an “exemplary” employee, he was paid less than similarly situated white co-workers. 

The complaint goes on to describe an incident during which the plaintiff injured his left shoulder on the job and sought workers’ compensation benefits. He claims his supervisor discouraged him from going to his doctor appointments and then accused him of co-conspiring with another employee to steal from the defendants. The plaintiff “vehemently denied” the accusations, according to the suit, and refused to take a lie detector test. He was allegedly suspended “until further notice,” which the plaintiff claims was an unlawful response to his race, work injury, and complaints about the defendants’ pay practices.