Another Case For ENDA

A Tennessee hotel worker was told to his face last week that he was fired for being gay. And knowing that the state has no employment discrimination law that protects LGBT people, his employer dared him to sue.

David Hill is looking for a new job after he said he was fired Tuesday from a former Brentwood Holiday Inn, which now goes by the name Artee Hotel. "They literally said to me because of my orientation and my alternative lifestyle, that I was not a fit for the hotel," said Hill. Hill said he used to be the human resources director and is shocked at the owner's decision to dismiss him because of his sexual preference. "The owner (Tarun Surti) said, 'I don't give a damn. They can sue me. I will not have any of the gays in leadership roles in my hotel.' And that's a quote," said Hill.

While the owner was not available to talk to Channel 4, the assistant general manager, Leonard Stoddard, did comment. He said Hill was fired because "he was gay." He said he was also the one who had to tell Hill that he was being removed from his position. "The owner, Mr. Surti, comes from a culture that is not very tolerant to the gay lifestyle, and therefore he felt it necessary to have him removed from the workforce at the property," said Stoddard.

"(He was fired) strictly because of his sexual orientation?” asked reporter Katina Rankin. "I do believe that's a very fair assumption," asked Stoddard. "Did you agree with his decision?" asked Rankin. "I did not," said Stoddard. "It is in our employee handbook that no one should be discriminated against, harassed verbally, physically or any other means for their sexuality, their sexual orientation, gender, race or anything of that sort." Hill said he plans on taking legal action and he has already filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Department of Labor. The hotel is privately owned and not part of the Holiday Inn chain. As of Thursday evening, the owner of the hotel had not returned Channel 4's calls.

Here's a map of the states that currently offer sexual orientation and gender identity protections as of August 2008. The grey states offer no protection at all. Purple is the ideal.
UPDATE: Pam Spaulding reports that the fired employee's manager, who is also gay, has now been fired for speaking to the press.

Former Asst. General Manager Leonard Studdard's employment was terminated by hotel owner Tarun Surti via email on Thursday, Jan. 8. Stoddard's termination follows that of David Hill who was fired last week from the hotel. Stoddard and Hill claim that they were fired because of Surti's anti-homosexual views. But, Surti maintains that both men were fired for other reasons.

Surti said in an email to Stoddard that he was fired because he lied to the media about Hill's termination. "I am here in the office and shocked to hear what you had said to the media," Surti wrote in the email to Stoddard. "If it is true that you told media that David was fired because he is gay, you obviously told them a lie. Such behavior is subject to immediate termination and I would like you to restrain from coming to the hotel."

Surti previously told O&AN that Hill was fired because the company was 'scaling down' its workforce in order to survive in the troubled economy. The ex-employees claim that they were fired after Surti received a letter from a former employee which outed the hotel's gay staff. Stoddard and Hill have scheduled a picket outside the hotel on Saturday, Jan. 17, at 9 a.m. at 760 Old Hickory Blvd. in Brentwood. "It's all about getting the information about these events out there to the public," Stoddard said. "We'll stay there until we feel we've been effective."