Chinese man asked how to pronounce Asian surname

November 2022

Michael* is of Chinese ethnicity and felt that he was discriminated against at work because of his race. 

During a training session, Michael’s supervisor asked him how to pronounce the Asian presenter’s surname to which he responded, ‘why would you assume I’d know that?’. 

After the training session, Michael’s supervisor called him into his office and accused Michael of calling him a racist.

Michael lodged a complaint of race discrimination with ADNSW.

The complaint was resolved at a conciliation conference when the employer provided Michael with a written statement of regret and agreed to provide cultural sensitivity training for all its employees.

*Name has been changed to protect the privacy of the individual.