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State Department of Labor Secretary Conroy Chino is the subject of a lawsuit by a former high-level employee who claims he was forced from his job because he is Hispanic and spoke publicly about problems in the department.

The suit was filed Friday on behalf of Miguel Gomez, a former Albuquerque city councilor. Gomez was appointed director of the department's employment security division by Gov. Bill Richardson in 2005.

He resigned in May 2006 for what a department spokesman termed "personal reasons."

The suit claims that Chino, who is American Indian, is "known by many Hispanics within the Department for being extremely anti-Hispanic."

It also named the state Department of Labor as a defendant.

Labor Department spokesman Carlos Caste¤eda said the suit is under review by legal counsel and declined to respond to Gomez's allegations.

However, Caste¤eda said a federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission investigation into discrimination complaints by other labor employees found no wrongdoing by Chino or the department.

"We are a little baffled by the complaint," Caste¤eda said of Gomez's lawsuit. "We are an agency that is majority Hispanic."

Eric Sirotkin, a lawyer representing Gomez, said the department's discrimination against his client was especially outrageous because the department is charged with investigating complaints of employment discrimination.

"Their actions are an affront to what the department is supposed to stand for," Sirotkin said. "We hope this action will not only redeem Miguel's reputation but expose the terrible employment practices of the Department of Labor.

The lawsuit claims Chino slowly stripped Gomez and other Hispanic employees of their authority. It also claims Gomez drew Chino's ire by objecting to an attempt by the labor secretary to conceal a $17,000 contract for food given to an organization whose board of directors includes Chino's brother-in-law.

Gomez, who made $61,000 per year and initially oversaw more than 200 employees, was placed on unpaid leave on March 31 and then demoted.

According to the lawsuit, Gomez was called into Chino's office and given a choice of resigning or being fired on May 22, five days after an article critical of the department appeared in the Santa Fe Reporter.

The suit seeks Gomez's reinstatement and compensatory damages for discrimination and first amendment violations.

As an exempt employee, Gomez served at the pleasure of the governor. Richardson spokesman Gilbert Gallegos did not immediately return a call seeking comment Friday afternoon.