Apple faces Indian engineerâs bias lawsuit
Apple Inc. lost an early round in a discrimination lawsuit brought in the U.S. by a female engineer from India who says her two managers
Apple Inc. lost an early round in a discrimination lawsuit brought in the U.S. by a female engineer from India who says her two managers -- one from her country, the other from Pakistan -- treated her as they would in their own countries: as a subservient.The womanâs case in California state court is the latest to allege workplace bias in Silicon Valley that focuses on cultural prejudices of some tech workers from South Asia. Cisco Systems Inc. is fighting a suit brought by Californiaâs civil rights agency alleging bias against a member of Indiaâs so-called lower castes, known as Dalits.Anita Nariani Schulze is part of the Sindhi minority -- she is Hindu, with ancestry in the Sindh region of what is now Pakistan.
Her complaint alleges that her senior and direct managers, both male, consistently excluded her from meetings while inviting her male counterparts, criticized her, micromanaged her work, and deprived her of bonuses, despite positive performance evaluations and significant team contributions.Schulze claims the managersâ animus reflects sexism, racism, religious bias and discrimination on the basis of national origin. The Sindhi Hindu nationality is âknown for its technical acumenâ and its gender equality, she says, which âexacerbated the managersâ discriminatory treatment.âIn a tentative ruling on Wednesday, Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Sunil R. Kulkarni rejected Appleâs request to toss out the suit.
While not ruling on the merits of the case, Kulkarni said Schulze had adequately supported her legal claims. Apple had argued her claims werenât specific enough and were based on stereotypes.But the judge rejected Schulzeâs request to represent a class of female Apple employees who suffered job discrimination over the last four years. He agreed with Apple that she didnât show a pattern of discrimination that could be applied to a broader group.It wasnât clear from the courtâs docket whether the
judge will hold a hearing Thursday before issuing a final ruling.Apple didnât immediately reply to a request for comment.In the Cisco case, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing alleged that two Indian employees at the San Jose-based company discriminated against a Dalit co-worker on the basis of caste.Cisco has denied the claims, insisting it has âzero tolerance for discrimination.â It also said the lawsuit should be tossed out because caste isnât a protected category under U.S. civil rights law.