A man seeking to
be reinstated in a job he said he lost at
Nevada's reformatory for boys in Elko because he's gay and
black was turned down Wednesday in Carson City on
procedural grounds. Hearing officer Pat Dolan said
John Young III, who was told last month by the
superintendent of the Nevada Youth Training Center that he
couldn't stay on as a group supervisor, filed his
appeal with the wrong entity and should refile it elsewhere.
Dolan said he lacked jurisdiction given the
allegations of discrimination and that Young, if he
hadn't already done so, should take his case "without
delay" to the state attorney general, the state Equal
Rights Commission, and the state personnel department, among others.
Young, a probationary employee who hired on with
the state in February 2005 and was assigned to Elko
last April, said he never got any on-the-job training,
job evaluations, formal reprimands, or even verbal
warnings about his work at NYTC prior to getting his walking
papers February 3.
Dolan said Young wrote that his problems stemmed
from the fact that "I'm an African-American whose
sexual orientation is of the same-sex gender, which in
this field is frowned upon."
The hearing officer said a review of Young's
personnel file showed no evidence of evaluations,
reprimands, or counseling, just as Young claimed.
Dolan also said work performance standards for Young's
position are required by law to be on file but were not.
While it's standard practice in Nevada to allow
agencies to dismiss probationary workers without
cause, Dolan said that standard "does not empower an
appointing authority to reject such a probationary
employee for any cause." State law says an employer can't
fire someone or otherwise discriminate against that
person because of race, color, religion, sex, sexual
orientation, age, disability, or national origin.
Dolan added that Young's allegations raise
"serious concerns" about his treatment that need to be
resolved. (AP)