Reference no: EM131451204

Question: Hector Garcia, a bilingual Mexican-American, is a salesperson for Gloor Lumber and Supply, Inc. Management complimented Garcia's work on several occasions and gave him a $250 bonus at the end of his first year. The company had a rule that the employees could not speak Spanish on the job (except during breaks) unless they were dealing with customers who could not speak English. On one occasion, Garcia was asked a question on the job by another Mexican-American employee, and when he replied in Spanish he was discharged. The employer claims Garcia's infraction of the rule was only one of the reasons for his discharge. The employer offered evidence of Garcia's general failure to perform other aspects of his job and claims that the compliments and bonus Garcia received were motivational tools used by the company to encourage him to perform better, not evidence that he was doing a good job. Garcia claims that the English-only rule is discrimination based on national origin. What do you think?