Legal

Claims can take a toll on an employer’s reputation, finances, culture and more — not to mention the effect on employees directly involved. While the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission reported a drop in charges received last year, the more than 72,000 filed show that discrimination and harassment complaints are still very much a concern for employers.…

The U.S. Senate this week confirmed the nominations by Republicans of three commissioners for the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Keith E. Sonderling, deputy administrator of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, was confirmed Sept. 22 with a term that expires July 1, 2024 with a vote of 52-41. Sonderling was nominated in July 2019,…

An Arkansas Kroger store engaged in religious discrimination when it refused to exempt two employees from a dress code that required they wear a rainbow heart logo, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) alleged in a lawsuit (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. The Kroger Co. dba Kroger Store No. 625, No. 4:20-cv-1099 (E.D. Ark., Sept.…

From video game publishers to coffee shops, pay disclosures are rattling HR. Sources say employers need to be careful when forming a response. In recent years, workers across entire companies and even entire industries have taken pay transparency to a new level via crowdsourced spreadsheets. One of the most recent examples comes from video game…

The post-pandemic landscape may be a very different one, especially with respect to leave and accommodations, experts are saying. It’s a familiar scene for anyone who has spent time in an office: Leadership calls an all-hands meeting and droves of employees pile into the main conference room, dragging in chairs and getting cozy. But COVID-19…

Policy revisions are sure to come, but not all will necessarily be permanent. The end of a year is typically a time for businesses to take stock of their successes and failures as well as the major turning points that defined them. In 2020, however, a succession of world-changing events may force those conversations sooner…

Employees come to work to perform a job, but they also bring their social, political and personal ideologies, which they may choose to express in conversations with co-workers, on their clothing or in other ways. Thousands of Americans are actively engaging in social justice movements and standing up for causes such as Black Lives Matter.…

Employers are charting paths to reopening workplaces in spite of the turbulence caused by the pandemic, and compliance frameworks are beginning to emerge, speakers said Aug. 5 at the 2020 Disability Management Employer Coalition Virtual Annual Conference. As HR departments for essential businesses or customer-facing industries reopen, some questions are easier to answer than others at…

Workers must be able to de-escalate situations before they become heated and possibly violent, a recent client told us. In response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, many companies are requiring customers and employees alike to wear face masks. Walmart announced July 15 that face masks would be mandatory for customers, signaling the start of a widespread requirement…

Although the 2020 EEO-1 deadline was extended due to the pandemic, contractors and subcontractors who have a current contract covered by the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA) or had a contract as of January 1, 2020, must file a VETS-4212 report by September 30, 2020. The filing database is now open. Contractors should file as early as…

3 Steps to Prevent Discrimination Complaints

Senate Confirms 3 Commissioners, Maintaining EEOC’s Right-Leaning Quorum

EEOC: Kroger’s Refusal to Exempt Workers From Wearing Rainbow Logo Was Discrimination

Pay Transparency Takes Center Stage as More Workers Talk Wages

3 Workplace COVID-19 Trends That Are Likely Here to Stay

‘It’s Just Breathtaking’: How a Turbulent 2020 Is Likely to Impact HR Policies In The Long Run

How HR Should Respond to Social and Political Expression at Work

Reopening Frameworks Clearer for Some, But School Situation a ‘Huge Concern’

How Employers Can Train Front-Line Workers to Implement Mask Rules

No COVID Extension: VETS-4212 Filing Deadline is September 30, 2020