Retaliation
Timing Matters – Failure to Respond and Act Promptly Can Create Liability
A recent case emphasizes the importance of timing – both in terms of reacting to reports of employee misconduct and in imposing discipline (particularly termination). As the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently found, terminating an employee, based on conduct that occurred months earlier, shortly after they complain of discrimination certainly seems…
Read MoreEEOC Issues New Guidance on Religious Discrimination and Accommodation of Religious Beliefs
Whenever there is a change in federal administrations, employers must be aware of how various employment laws, rules and regulations will change. One hot topic in employment law, which has seen significant change in recent years, is religious discrimination and accommodation of religious beliefs in the workplace. This issue is pertinent, not only because of…
Read MoreFederal District Court Found That Employer Did Not Violate Title VII in Prohibiting Black Lives Matter Attire
Over the past couple of months, we have been asked by our clients if there been any court rulings on whether companies can limit employees from wearing Black Lives Matter and other social justice attire to work. The answer is Yes. During this pandemic and the political and social unrest underlying the Black Lives Matter…
Read MoreEmployers Paid $439M to Resolve EEOC Discrimination Claims in 2020
Employers paid more than $439 million to resolve U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) discrimination allegations. That number includes both private sector and state and local government workplaces during the agency’s 2020 fiscal year, according to a Feb. 26 statement. Retaliation claims constituted more than half of all charges filed with the agency last year, while disability-related claims and…
Read MoreCheck Your Call-In Policies
A recent Third Circuit Court of Appeal decision provides great guidance on what a good call-in policy can look like. In this case the employer, Penn State Health, utilized a call-in policy that required employees to make twocalls when they wanted to request FMLA leave: First, an employee had to call to a designated “call-off” line,…
Read MoreGender Stereotypes Undermine Sexual Harassment Investigations, Study Says
Women who do not conform to societal stereotypes of femininity may experience bias when seeking legal protections against sexual harassment, according to a study published Jan. 14 in the American Psychological Association’s Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. In recognizing the barriers to legal rights, it’s crucial to understand misperceptions about victims of sexual harassment, according to the…
Read More‘Clear’ Circuit Split on Sexual Harassment Requires SCOTUS Review, Employee Says
The U.S. Supreme Court should weigh in on a Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 sexual harassment standard and resolve a “clear and important” circuit split, an employee argued in a Nov. 12 filing (Paskert v. Kemna-ASA Auto Plaza, Inc., No. 18-3623). The petition, originally filed in July, challenged an 8th U.S. Circuit Court…
Read MoreSenate Confirms 3 Commissioners, Maintaining EEOC’s Right-Leaning Quorum
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,…
Read MoreBack to Basics: A Retaliation Refresher
In this, our fifth and final installment of Back to Basics, we outline an anti-retaliation checklist. Case in Point – when supervisors sat down with Frank Brown to tell him he couldn’t take leave to attend a doctor’s appointment with his wife during the workday, he yelled and banged his fists on the table, court documents…
Read MoreYour Employee Filed An EEOC Charge. Now What?
Charges of discrimination filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) (and similar charges with state and local human relations agencies) are a critical first step in an employee’s discrimination claim. For employers, the importance of responding strategically to such charges cannot be understated. This article will cover what to expect, and will provide a few key strategic…
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