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Discrimination / Harassment

Timing is everything when it comes to workplace romances gone bad and terminations

02/13/2012

When you terminate an emp­loyee for a good, obvious and well-documented reason, you seldom have to worry about a surprise harassment complaint. Former employees file them fairly frequently, but courts tend to view them with suspicion. The obvious question: Why didn’t the employee complain about harassment before?

Bullet-proof your promotion process: Tell everyone to forward notes and documents to HR

02/13/2012
When it comes to promotions, courts want employers to be honest and fair. Otherwise, they won’t interfere—unless the employer has no records to back up its promotion decisions or show how its decision-making process worked.

Minneapolis Parks & Rec faces race bias charges

02/09/2012
The Minneapolis NAACP has leveled charges of discrimination against the Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board. The group claims board practices are biased against minority employees and city residents.

Use harassment hotline? Keep detailed records

02/09/2012
Chances are, you have a sexual harassment policy that gives em­­ployees several ways to report har­­ass­­ment—maybe including a hotline for phoning in problems. But beware: An employee may file an EEOC complaint before you even have a chance to investigate alleged harassment. If that happens, your hotline records may play a crucial role in your defense.

Spike in religious, national-origin job bias claims

02/09/2012
For the second year in a row, the EEOC received a record number of employee job discrimination claims (99,947 in 2011). New EEOC figures show that religious and national-origin bias claims saw the biggest increases last year, up 10% and 5%, respectively.

HR’s loose lips can sink your company’s defense

02/07/2012
Sometimes in HR, you know more than you want to know. But as this new court ruling shows, sharing in­­side information with an employee isn’t a smart move … for your em­­ployer or your career.

Can dermatologist tell worker to tone down the tan?

02/06/2012
Q. We’re a dermatology practice and one of our new em­­ployees is excessive with tanning. She has a dark tan and sometimes is sunburned. We promote the opposite of what she does. She also wears tight low-cut tops. Are we allowed to say something in both regards?

Panera Bread gets double helping of bias litigation

02/03/2012
An Ohio Panera Bread franchisee faces an additional lawsuit charging racial discrimination in the wake of a manager’s suit that claims he was fired for refusing to follow a racist directive.

Quit over offensive graffiti? He can get unemployment

02/03/2012
Here’s another reason to act fast when an employee complains about offensive graffiti in the workplace: He can quit and collect unemployment compensation benefits.

Let ’em know: Post all promotion opportunities

02/03/2012
Here’s an easy fix for a potentially big problem: Post all promotion openings. If you do, only employees who actually apply can take you to court. That can save thousands in legal fees and lost productivity. It also signals to employees that you value them and encourage equal opportunity.