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Discrimination / Harassment

Snapshot: Your staff may not trust your anti-harassment policy

02/27/2018

One third of employees report that they don’t believe their employer’s sexual harassment policy is effective.

Ensure delivery of religious accommodations

02/27/2018

A Maryland furniture delivery company has agreed to pay a spurned job applicant $94,541 to atone for not granting a religious accommodation.

EEOC strategy plans doing more with less

02/22/2018

The EEOC has released its Strategic Plan for Federal Fiscal Years 2018–2022, the first such plan of the Trump administration, under the leadership of Acting EEOC Chair Victoria Lipnic.

Appeals court rules: Discrimination based on employee’s obesity may violate FEHA

02/21/2018

Workers whose obesity has physiological causes are protected from discrimination and harassment under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act. Super­­visors who discriminate against those workers may face liability.

Guess who else is invoking #MeToo: the EEOC

02/21/2018

The #MeToo social media movement has been wildly successful at shining a spotlight on the sexual harassment women often experience at work. Now the EEOC has begun using #MeToo in press releases announcing sexual harassment litigation.

Impartial discipline: The best defense against bias claims

02/20/2018

Treat all employees impartially and you’ll rarely end up on the losing end of a discrimination lawsuit.

Note 90-day deadline after EEOC right-to-sue letters

02/14/2018

Employees who receive their EEOC right-to-sue letter have just 90 days to file a federal lawsuit. Advice: Note that deadline as soon as you receive your copy.

Requesting religious accommodation isn’t protected, but that doesn’t kill lawsuit

02/14/2018

Employees who engage in so-called protected activity under Title VII cannot be retaliated against for doing so. But the definition of protected activity is narrow.

OK to add more reasons for termination, as long as they’re consistent with first rationale

02/14/2018

Some former employees who sue over alleged discrimination try to discredit their employers’ explanations for discharge. Even so, employers have a great deal of flexibility about how they explain the reason an employee was fired.

Work romance ends? Separate the former lovers

02/14/2018

When a sexual relationship between a supervisor and a subordinate ends, there’s likely to be trouble in the workplace. If the subordinate is complaining about how her former lover is treating her at work, the only safe course of action is to remove the supervisor entirely.