Marine Was Fired Unfairly, Lawyer Says

An attorney is demanding that Hyundai reconsider its decision to fire a Marine reservist serving in Iraq until he can return to the United States to defend himself against sexual harassment allegations.

The attorney, Gloria Allred, said Sgt. Clifford Moffitt, 35, of Irvine has not been given a fair chance to address the harassment charges because he is fighting in Iraq.

Hyundai, the automaker based in Fountain Valley, released a statement Monday saying that Moffitt had been fired after the company concluded he was responsible for numerous instances of sexual harassment in the workplace.

The company’s investigation began after Moffitt left for duty in January, and “multiple employees” confirmed that Moffitt was a harasser, Finbar O’Neill, president and CEO of Hyundai Motor America, said in a statement.

The company “has zero tolerance for this kind of behavior,” O’Neill said, “and we take our responsibilities as an employer very seriously.”

Allred, however, said the company may have violated the federal Uniformed Services Employment and Re-Employment Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination against an employee because of the employee’s military status.

“We still believe that he may have been discriminated against,” Allred said. “Had he not been in the military, most likely he would have been called in and given a chance to respond ... They pursued a course of action which, in effect, ambushed him while he was unable to defend himself,”

Shari Moffitt, the Marine’s pregnant wife, said her husband was a four-year employee of Hyundai Motor Finance who never had any trouble and was named “Manager of the Month” in January.