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Discrimination / Harassment

You can’t discriminate based on type of citizenship

07/14/2022
Employers cannot discriminate against citizens, legal immigrants and others with valid work visas on the basis of their national origin. The EEOC has made it clear that the type of citizenship an applicant holds can’t be used as a reason not to hire. That, too, would amount to national-origin discrimination.

Court: Faith allows skipping preferred pronouns

07/14/2022
A worker whose gender identity differs from that assigned at birth can insist on being addressed by his or her preferred pronouns. At the same time, a co-worker whose sincerely held religious beliefs reject the concept of transgenderism might object on religious grounds to having to use those preferred pronouns.

Prepare to prove hardship of accommodating religion

07/07/2022
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act requires employers to accommodate employees’ religious beliefs and practices unless doing so would create an undue burden on business operations. That means employers that reject a religious accommodation request must be prepared to demonstrate exactly how it would have created an undue hardship.

Excuse nonbelievers from prayer at work

07/05/2022
The EEOC is suing a North Carolina residential construction and renovation company for violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act when it required employees to attend prayer sessions at work.

Learn from Google’s $118 million pay-equity lesson

06/30/2022
Many employers regularly conduct equity studies to make sure their pay policies don’t discriminate based on gender, race or other protected characteristics. It’s considered a best practice to outsource those studies in order to blunt criticism that an internal review wasn’t thorough or accurate.

Investigate harassment no matter who is implicated

06/24/2022
The EEOC does not tolerate employers that ignore sexual harassment by senior leaders. You must immediately investigate such allegations, employing neutral outside investigators if possible.

Document how you tried to accommodate religion

06/09/2022
Employers must reasonably accommodate employees’ religious beliefs and need to worship. But it’s not an absolute mandate; the accommodation must be reasonable. If it would cause an undue hardship, employers must document their accommodation efforts and the disruption caused by unsuccessful attempts to accommodate religious needs.

Consider calling police for severe harassment

06/09/2022
If an employee complains about sexual harassment that has moved well beyond mere verbal abuse to include unwanted touching or other physical contact, it may be time to call the police. Serious allegations call for a robust response to protect the employee and your organization if the behavior repeats or escalates.

Assess policies, practices for LGBT inclusion

06/09/2022
June 15 is the second anniversary of U.S. Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, which ruled employers cannot discriminate based on sexual orientation or gender identity. June is also Pride Month, making now a good time to review your legal obligations and perhaps reset policies to make your workplace more welcoming for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees.

Employers and employees give high marks to EEOC mediation

06/08/2022
Two new independent studies report overwhelming employer and employee satisfaction with the EEOC’s mediation program, as well as the commission’s transition from in-person to online mediation as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.