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Discrimination / Harassment

Doesn’t matter that he didn’t put a ring on it! Engagement unnecessary for retaliation

03/03/2015
Back in 2011, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that an employee who was fired after his fiancé—who worked for the same employer—filed an internal discrimination complaint could sue on his own accord alleging retaliation. The fiancé, the court concluded, was within the “zone of interest” meant to be protected from retaliation under Title VII. The Court held that by firing someone’s significant other, the employer in effect would indirectly punish the complainer. Until now, exactly who would be included in the “zone of interest” was in question.

Pennsylvania bosses personally liable for bias

03/03/2015
Here’s an important addition to your training curriculum: Make sure supervisors understand that under Pennsylvania law—unlike federal law—­they may be personally liable for discriminating against employees.

Few details needed to begin hostile environment suit

03/03/2015
Employees who claim they were victims of a sexually hostile work environment don’t have to provide an exhaustive list of alleged hostile acts. Details can be provided later.

Single stupid comment can tank legitimate decision

03/02/2015
Bosses who don’t have appropriate verbal filters can accidentally turn a legitimate management decision into evidence of discrimination.

Appeal of firing doesn’t give more time to sue

03/02/2015
Employees who claim they were fired for discriminatory reasons have just 300 days to file an EEOC complaint. The clock starts ticking the day they’re terminated, not when they have exhausted internal appeals processes.

Harassment or just a bad-behaving boss?

02/26/2015
Courts expect em­­ploy­­ees to have relatively thick skins. Behavior that is crude or obnoxious isn’t usually grounds for a harassment lawsuit unless it targets people based on a protected characteristic (sex, age, race, disability, etc.).Still, the “equal opportunity harasser” argument is a pretty flimsy nail to hang your defense on.

Justices appear ready to back applicant in hijab case

02/26/2015
Oral arguments held Feb. 25 in a Supreme Court case involving a teenager who says the Muslim headscarf she wore to an interview cost her a job at Abercrombie & Fitch did not go well for the retail chain.

EEOC says Walmart discriminated by denying same-sex benefits

02/23/2015
Walmart could soon face an EEOC lawsuit alleging the retail giant engaged in sex discrimination when it denied health insurance benefits to the same-sex spouse of an employee in Massachusetts.

$8 million price wasn’t right for game show

02/23/2015
The producers of “The Price is Right,” TV’s longest-running game show, have learned that negative comments about pregnancies can result in jackpots for employees, to the tune of more than $8 million.

Unfairness isn’t illegal

02/19/2015
Judges can distinguish between an unfair boss and an illegal practice.