NJ county employee cleaned boss’s poop “mounds,” faced race discrimination, lawsuit says

TRENTON — A Black analyst working for Mercer County says he faced retaliation, racial discrimination, and at times a hazardous working environment after his boss had "accidents," according to a lawsuit.

The Trentonian first reported that the civil complaint filed earlier this month claimed that the employee had to clean up after the chief of the Mercer County Emergency Services Communications Center "left mounds of human excrement along the hallway."

Tyrone Ebron started working for Mercer County in 2014 as a clerk typist. The suit said he was only promoted once in 2019 to assistant program analyst, but was passed on other promotions and raises.

The lawsuit stated that MCESCC Chief Jeffrey Golomb sometimes wore an adult diaper to work for a medical condition and soiled himself at least twice since 2020.

In one instance in November 2020, there was no janitorial staff on duty and Ebron had to use a mop and bucket to clean up after the fecal matter had "hardened on the floors," the suit said. It claimed there was another spill three months later and Ebron needed to sidestep the mess to get Lysol wipes for Golomb, who was on the toilet.

The complaint claimed that while Ebron was prepared to stay quiet about the ordeal, he took issue with Golomb's lack of action to clean or warn others. Some unaware dispatchers stepped in the feces, according to the lawsuit.

Ebron attempted to report the incidents to a county administrator anonymously. But after the second incident, his time at work began a "descent into a racially biased and hostile work environment rife with retaliation," according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit also names Robert Hartman, coordinator for the county's Office of Emergency Management. It claimed Hartman instructed Ebron to stop working overtime hours, which would limit Ebron's pay, in retaliation for a separate dispute.

While Ebron was apparently told to stop making overtime pay, another employee who Ebron spotted sleeping on the job several times was allowed to claim over 100 hours of overtime throughout two pay periods. This other white employee was given a "good old boy pass," Ebron's attorney Christopher D’Alessandro wrote in the lawsuit.

The complaint also stated that Ebron was passed over for promotions in favor of white employees who did not work as hard.

When reached for comment, Mercer County spokesperson Julie Wilmont told New Jersey 101.5 that the county's policy is to not comment on pending litigation.

State records show Golomb is paid a salary of $93,652, while Hartman's salary is $108,898.

Rick Rickman is a reporter for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach him at richard.rickman@townsquaremedia.com

Click here to contact an editor about feedback or a correction for this story.