A transgender man has sued Amazon after he was allegedly denied promotion and was harassed by co-workers for being pregnant.

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(Photo : Reutersconnect)
An Amazon worker delivers packages amid the coronavirus disease.

According to a Fox News report, Shaun Simmons, who previously worked at the online retail giant's warehouse in Princeton, New Jersey, said he told his supervisor Mike Menno about his pregnancy in June 2019.

Menno then told another supervisor, Tyler Houpt, and the word spread throughout the fulfillment center. Simmons alleged that other workers began harassing him in the restroom and elsewhere after that.

The federal suit was filed on Monday. Menno and Houpt were named as defendants, along with the company. Simmons said there was a time when someone asked him in the men's bathroom, "aren't you pregnant?" 

In the suit, he said: "The harassment was purposeful, intentional and willful, undertaken by members of management, in fact, and in law, and members of management were willfully indifferent to the harassment." 

Simmons also alleged that the two supervisors began criticizing his work performance to get him demoted. He noted that he was placed on paid leave after he complained to human resources.

According to an article published in the New Jersey Law Journal, the transgender man was demoted to item picker, which required him to lift large bags of dog food and other heavy items despite his condition.

Simmons said that caused pain in his abdomen. Thus, he asked for an accommodation. However, he was again placed on unpaid leave in July, pending the child's birth, after he reported and complained to the human resource officers, who told him to provide a physician's note for any pregnancy-related accommodations.

He claimed that he provided them with the required documentation, but his accommodation was denied. 

Seeking back pay, reinstatement, as well as compensatory and punitive damages, Simmons accused the online retail giant of harassment based on pregnancy and based on gender identity and discrimination.

The suit reads: "Amazon has a policy and practice of discriminating against individuals because of their disability and/or pregnancy, failing to provide employees with accommodations, and retaliating against employees for requesting an accommodation, which is demonstrated by the dozens of lawsuits filed against Amazon in the past six years in the state of New Jersey alone."

Meanwhile, a top Amazon spokesperson declined to comment on pending litigation but said that the firm does not tolerate any harassment of any kind. 

"We have been, and continue to be, committed to accommodating all employees to perform their duties in a safe and inclusive workplace," the spokesperson added, as per FOX Business.

The spokesperson further noted that Amazon offers its employees a Transgender Resources Toolkit to help their transgender workforce through the process of transitioning, and provides resources for allies and Amazon employees who manage, support, and work with them.

Reports said it was not the first time that a lawsuit was filed against the Amazon. There are reportedly seven other lawsuits filed across the country by women employees who claimed they were fired after becoming pregnant.  

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