One of the Imperial Palace crystal dragons that adorn the interior of the casino resort in Saipan. The casino’s operator, Imperial Pacific International, faces a new lawsuit from a former employee. (Image: Pinterest)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nThe latest legal confrontation will pit IPI against a former employee. The Saipan Tribune<\/em> reported Wednesday that Stephen Abonita is on the offensive, targeting the company for cheating him out of money.<\/p>\nAbonita, a Philippine national, took a job as a casino pit supervisor at Imperial Palace, with what seemed at the time a lucrative contract. After he started with the company, he realized he was receiving a salary much lower than other pit supervisors, and now wants restitution.<\/p>\n
Discrimination and Harassment<\/h2>\n
Abonita was to receive a salary of $48K per year. He later learned that some other supervisors, including those with less experience, were receiving more. As a result, Abonita accuses IPI of discriminating against him because he\u2019s Filipino.<\/p>\n
There are other factors that he says support his claim. Per his contract, Abonita was to receive two weeks of paid time off a year, free transportation home at the end of his contract, and one free meal per day. In addition, he should have been entitled to overtime pay if he worked more than 40 hours a week.<\/strong><\/p>\nInstead, he began working daily shifts of eight and a half hours while only being paid for eight. While one pit supervisor, reportedly a white male, received $700 as a housing allowance each month, Abonita had to pay $25 a week to live in an IPI-supplied dormitory.<\/p>\n
When he had to return home to renew his work visa, Abonita claims he didn\u2019t receive the travel compensation that IPI included in his contract. He also says the company also never paid him for the additional time he worked each week.<\/p>\n