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Apple sued for discrimination and harassment by ex-patent attorney

By Nagasunder in US business news, posted December 28, 2022

A former top Apple patent attorney claims she was wrongfully fired after complaining about being abused by a male co-worker.

This includes receiving death threats from people with whom she had a romantic relationship.

Jayna Richardson Whitt filed a lawsuit in California against Apple, alleging that the company retaliated against her after learning of her "domestic abuse victim status" by denying her opportunities for higher-level positions and stifling her career growth.

She is suing for unspecified monetary damages and emotional distress. Apple did not respond immediately to an emailed request for comment.

Whitt has been with Apple since 2006, where she claims she rose to positions such as Director of IP Transactions while also facing discrimination.

A white male supervisor “favored Caucasian males and subjected minorities, females, and employees with disabilities to discriminatory treatment,” she claims in the complaint filed December 20 in state court in San Mateo, California.

The patent attorney, who described herself as a single parent of Asian heritage, claimed in her lawsuit that the discrimination was visible in hiring choices, mentoring, assignments, and invitations to meetings.

After her digital accounts and iPhone were compromised by her abuser, Apple was allegedly asked by Whitt to help secure them. However, this request was denied.

The business had previously spent more than $630,000 to shield Chief Executive Tim Cook from a stalker in 2021.

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Whitt said in her complaint that despite sharing a video of her White male colleague pointing a gun to his head and sharing evidence of “death threats and terrorization,” Apple left her “defenseless,” she said.

According to Whitt, Apple left her to secure her devices, accounts, and Wi-Fi on her own, with no assistance from the company's global security department.

Whitt's employment was terminated in July "based on pretextual accusations that she violated Apple policies," she claimed in her complaint after she posted an essay in April describing retaliation and discrimination by Apple.

Source: Bloomberg

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