A high-ranking finance executive has filed a lawsuit against her employer, alleging discrimination and retaliation based on her national origin. Wanda Ho lodged the complaint in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on June 7, 2024, targeting her employer, Mary Crane League.
According to the court documents, Ho was hired by Mary Crane League as Director of Finance and Operations on December 6, 2010. Over more than a decade, she received favorable performance reviews until March 2021 when she claims discriminatory practices began. Ho alleges that despite her consistent performance and dedication, including losing vacation days due to work commitments, she was denied salary increases while non-Asian colleagues received them. For instance, Bethzaida Rivera was granted a salary increase in August 2021 while Ho's similar request was ignored.
Ho further asserts that this pattern of discrimination continued under different supervisors within the organization. She recounts an incident on July 3, 2023, where Kristina Phillips, CEO of Mary Crane League, gave her a lower percentage of salary increments compared to other employees. Additionally, Phillips allegedly created a hostile work environment by terminating Min Yang (an Asian colleague) and delaying filling the vacant position which complicated Ho’s departmental operations.
The plaintiff's complaints were not limited to salary discrepancies. On March 15, 2024, Ho filed a charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), which issued her a notice of right to sue ten days later. The court filing states that less than ninety days have passed since receiving this notice.
Ho is seeking multiple forms of relief from the court: an injunction against Mary Crane League from continuing discriminatory practices; compensation for lost wages and benefits; compensatory and punitive damages; injunctive relief from hostile work environments; attorney’s fees; costs; and prejudgment interest.
The second count in Ho's complaint accuses Mary Crane League of retaliating against her after she reported national origin discrimination on April 19, 2023. Following this report to CEO Kristina Phillips during a phone conversation where she detailed incidents from previous years regarding ignored salary increase requests based on her national origin, Ho claims Phillips began imposing extra scrutiny and unwarranted disciplinary measures within her department starting May 2023.
For example, while Ho was on vacation on June 2, 2023, Phillips demanded via an emergency Zoom meeting that Andy Navarro work full-time in-office due to suspicions he had another job and insisted that Ho write him up. Furthermore, Phillips allegedly terminated Min Yang for sharing confidential salary information with other staff members without substantial proof.
In addition to financial damages for these retaliatory actions under Section 704(a) Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (as amended by the Civil Rights Act of 1991), Ho seeks similar remedies as outlined in Count I including enjoining unlawful employment practices and making her whole concerning all lost salaries and benefits.
The case is being handled by Joel F. Handler from Handler Law Group representing Wanda Ho. The presiding judge has yet to be named under Case ID: 1:24-cv-04746.