The philanthropic organization founded by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his pediatrician wife Priscilla Chan has been hit with a lawsuit by a man claiming to be a former contractor, who says was denied breaks and overtime, and then fired for complaining.
Abdi Habad said in his suit that he started at the Palo Alto, Calif.-based organization as a receptionist in May 2016. He was not given rest periods or uninterrupted 30-minute meal breaks, and did not receive premium pay for overtime worked, he alleged. The organization also "intentionally" did not provide him on paydays with the legally required itemized record of wages earned and hours worked, Habad claimed in the suit filed in San Francisco County Superior Court.
Although he was employed by a security company for his work at the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, the latter controlled his "wages, hours or working conditions," the lawsuit claims.
Abdi alleged that he was fired Feb. 28 for complaining about the employment issues, and he claimed in the suit that he wasn't paid owed wages after his termination. He is seeking unspecified damages.
A Chan Zuckerberg Initiative spokesperson said Habad was an employee of a former staffing and security vendor.
"We terminated our relationship with this vendor based on a variety of reasons," a spokesperson for the organization said.
"However, until we received a copy of the complaint, we were unaware of the claims made by the plaintiff. We are looking into the allegations made and have reached out to the plaintiff's attorney.
