• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

Discrimination / Harassment

Take every lawsuit seriously, even those that seem weak

12/21/2011
Employees with flimsy cases sometimes decide to sue anyway, acting as their own attorneys. No matter how frivolous such a lawsuit seems to be, face it head on and fight for dismissal.

Beware ill-chosen words, which–all by ­themselves–can sometimes launch lawsuits

12/21/2011
Sometimes, a single poorly chosen phrase can generate large legal bills, as the following case shows.

It’s got to be more than a hunch! Courts nix unsupported bias claims

12/21/2011
Good news for employers fighting off discrimination claims: Courts are losing patience with lawsuits based on little more than the argument that “it must have been discrimination.”

Leave this ugly legacy for the history books: Warn bosses against any reference to nooses

12/21/2011
You must instruct supervisors and managers: Any reference to hanging, ropes or nooses is absolutely forbidden in the workplace. Immediately address any complaints about nooses in the workplace. Also make sure no employee is punished for reporting the presence of a noose.

Refusing hair-sample drug test trims firm’s bank account

12/20/2011
G2 Secure Staff has settled a disability discrimination charge stemming from poor hiring practices at Raleigh-Durham International Air­­port, where the company provides security services.

Medical device manufacturer faces religious bias suit

12/20/2011

The EEOC has filed suit against Medi­­cal Specialties Inc., alleging it discriminated against Evelyn Lock­­­­­­hart because of her religion. She is a member of a Christian denomination whose practitioners are forbidden to work on certain days.

Feds: Papas Grille was good ol’ boy’s club

12/20/2011
Papas Grille in Durham is facing an EEOC lawsuit alleging it failed to address sexual harassment complaints from two women who worked in the kitchen.

When employee sues, always check EEOC filing date

12/20/2011
One of the easiest ways to win a bias or harassment lawsuit is to get it dismissed on the grounds that the employee who is suing missed the 180-day deadline for filing an EEOC complaint or never filed at all. Check with the EEOC, and then pass the information to your attorneys.

Take every suit seriously–even those in which employee is acting as her own lawyer

12/20/2011
Smart employers never ignore lawsuit filings—even if the allegations sound ridiculous and they’re coming from someone who is acting as her own lawyer.

Start new year with thorough review of your sexual harassment policies and practices

12/20/2011
More than a decade after creating their first sexual harassment policies, some employers may be getting lax. That might be especially true if they haven’t received any complaints. If that rosy scenario sounds like your organization, you might be courting trouble.