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Discrimination / Harassment

Wronged consulate employee seeks $2.3 million in legal fees

03/11/2015
A former employee at the Twin Cities Norwegian consulate is asking the country to pay her legal fees after she won a $270,000 equal pay judgment. A federal judge ruled that the woman was paid $30,000 less than a male employee performing comparable work.

Employee claims harassment? Consider transferring him

03/11/2015

Employees who are forced to work under conditions that leave them little choice but to quit can still sue, alleging they were constructively discharged. You can prevent those suits by transferring the employee who says he is being harassed to another equivalent job.

Tell bosses: Many subtle–and not so subtle–comments can add up to evidence of age bias

03/11/2015
Remind supervisors that when it comes to age discrimination, what they say matters. They should never comment directly on age, and should avoid references to “generational differences” or anything else that might be construed as code for age discrimination.

Factor past discipline into firing decision

03/10/2015
Employees fired for violating workplace rules can still sue over some alleged form of discrimination, even if they were indeed guilty of breaking company rules. Be ready to counter such allegations by always documenting exactly why you determined the employee should lose his job.

Justices may back job applicant in hijab case

03/10/2015
Abercrombie & Fitch had a bad day in court Feb. 25 when its lawyer squared off against skeptical Supreme Court Justices hearing oral arguments in a case involving a teenager who says the Muslim headscarf she wore to an interview cost her a job at the preppy retail chain.

Fired Texas news producer kills self outside Fox HQ

03/09/2015
An employee terminated from the Fox TV affiliate in Texas drove to New York City in January and shot himself outside News Corporation’s Midtown Manhattan headquarters.

NYC pawnshop pays full price to settle harassment complaint

03/09/2015
Seapod Pawnshops, with stores in Brooklyn and Queens, will pay $300,000 and sever ties with a former owner to settle sexual and racial harassment charges. Employees alleged that the former owner harassed them because of their sex, race and ethnicity.

Rid bulletin board of offensive materials ASAP

03/09/2015
Do you check bulletin boards and other areas regularly, looking for potentially offense materials? If not, make it a routine practice. Otherwise, you could wind up facing a hostile work environment lawsuit.

Watch out, boss! You can be sued separately

03/09/2015
Generally, all claims arising out of the same set of facts must be brought in one lawsuit. However, in limited circumstances, it’s possible for an employee to file separate lawsuits against her employer—and her supervisor!

Racial harassment charges reach all-time high

03/09/2015
Employees filed 8,826 charges of racial harassment with the EEOC in fiscal year 2014, the most ever. In 10 years, racial harassment charges have increased by 58%.