An HR manager has been fired after his rude refusal of a Vietnamese immigrant’s job application went viral
Minh Huynh, a father originally from Vietnam and living in Seattle, applied last month for a job at Dash Delivery LLC.
Minh is a naturalized citizen, and is fluent in Cantonese on top of his native Vietnamese, but sometimes needs help from his 18-year-old daughter, Emily Huynh, with his English.
Dad and daughter: Emily Huynh, 18, went viral when she shared the rude email her immigrant father Minh received from a Dash Delivery HR representative
Insulting: The email, sent by Bruce Peterson, told the father ‘if you no speak English I will send you home’
Standing up: Emily was horrified on her father’s behalf, and shared the email on Twitter
It was Emily who ignited a Twitter storm when she posted the horrific email her father received from Dash human resources employee Bruce Peterson online.
The screengrab she posted shows Bruce responding to Minh’s application with: ‘Let me tell you now, if you no speak English, I will send you home.’
When Minh showed Emily the email, her heart broke for her father. Then, she decided to take to Twitter to
‘Non-English speakers really have it hard bc my dad just got rejected from this job offer and the email literally stated: “Let me tell you now, if you no speak English I will send you Home,”‘ she wrote, adding that ‘all of Bruce’s emails we’re also very unprofessional and passive aggressive.’
The tweet took off immediately, garnering attention across the country. To date, it has been shared more than 24,000 times.
Emily even spoke about the email to news stations, telling KIRO TV that she believed Bruce’s email was ‘ignorant’ and ‘insulting’.
Looking on: Emily’s father moved to the States in 1995 and has run a restaurant as well as worked as a truck driver
Putting it up: Emily later revealed that her father wasn’t too hurt by the insulting email
Reaching out: Some people asked if the family were looking to file a lawsuit against Dash Delivery over the email
Kind strangers: Several people wrote to Emily offering to help her father find a new job
‘He knew what he was planning to say,’ she said. ‘The email takes typing. He knew what he was trying to tell my dad.’
She added on Twitter that while it’s understandable for an employer to expect someone applying for a role to speak English, the response ‘could have been handled way more professionally.’
Minh originally came to the United States in 1995. He owned a restaurant for a time before becoming an overnight truck driver, a job he held for 13 years before being laid off two years ago. He has had odd jobs since then, but is still hunting for a full-time position.
The viral tweet led to a windfall of offers to help Minh find work, as well as plenty of lawyers chiming in asking if the family wanted to file suit against Dash over the insulting email.
Minh, however, was ready to move on. Emily later posted: ‘My dad isn’t that hurt, he just doesn’t fully understand the concept of someone not hiring him for his lack of English when he has more experience than most people.’
But while Minh was taking his job hunt elsewhere, people online were bombarding Dash Delivery with complaints. The company eventually responded, firing Bruce over his tactless email.
Pointing out: Emily added that it was fine for the job to require English, but that did not mean the HR rep could speak to her father in such a ‘degrading’ manner
Conclusion: Dash Delivery later fired the manager, and issued an apology to Minh
‘Mr. Peterson’s communication was inappropriate and inconsistent with our company’s values. Our company is an equal opportunity employer and it is proud of its diverse workforce,’ a statement from the company read.
‘Indeed, the majority of the employees performing the work for which you applied speak English as a second language and they represent a wide range of backgrounds and nationalities.
‘While it is true that communicating effectively in English is an important part of the job in question, the manner in which Mr. Peterson communicated with you was highly inappropriate and following our investigation he is no longer employed with the company.’
Emily shared the statement on Twitter, thanking everyone who helped spread the word, and also revealing that Bruce himself has reached out to the family with remorse.
‘Update: Bruce himself has apologized with an email stating that he understand his wrong-doings and he begged for forgiveness,’ Emily wrote. ‘My dad forgives him and just hopes that people learn from their ignorance.’