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Discrimination / Harassment

Hoboken settles case alleging white supremacist police boss

07/26/2011

Five Hispanic members of the Hoboken Police Department will split $2 million following settlement of a lawsuit that alleged a SWAT team lieutenant was an unabashed white supremacist who forced the officers to perform yard work at his house. The officers alleged that internal complaints weren’t investigated.

Act ASAP to end sexually hostile environment

07/26/2011

It doesn’t take much for a work environment to become hostile enough to prompt an employee’s sexual harassment lawsuit. And if many incidents occur over time—or even if a handful of offenses are severe enough—the employee may have a winning case. That’s why you must act fast upon the first reported incident to stop further problems.

Trucking firm headed down wrong road on racial bias?

07/25/2011
Salisbury-based trucking firm A.C. Widenhouse faces charges it allowed racial harassment of black drivers who allege managers and co-workers frequently addressed them using ­racial epithets.

Did Pantego firm act too fast by firing worker taking meds?

07/25/2011

The EEOC is suing Pantego-based Tideland Electric Membership Corp., claiming it failed to accommodate a disabled employee. Jeffrey Erdman suffers from a chronic pain condition, but with the help of prescription painkillers, he was able to perform his job as an apprentice lineman. However, when Tideland learned of Erdman’s condition and the narcotic prescribed for his pain, it fired him.

Employee acting as own attorney only gets some leeway

07/25/2011

Courts don’t want an employee to lose a legitimate discrimination case just because she couldn’t afford an attorney. That’s why courts often allow jury trials for cases in which an employee represents herself. However, once a jury has heard the case, chances are that’s the end of the matter.

Public employees must gripe to OAH before going to EEOC

07/25/2011
If you are a state or local government employer, here’s a tip that may prompt a judge to dismiss an employee’s dis­­­­crimination claim early on: Public employees have to first file a discrimination claim with the state Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) before going to the EEOC.

Proceed with layoff if employee you planned to cut suddenly complains about discrimination

07/25/2011

When employees hear rumors that business is down, they often worry that jobs will be cut. One trick they sometimes use is to rattle a few chains and start complaining about discrimination. Don’t let that interfere with plans already in place for a layoff or other workplace changes that you know aren’t related to discrimination. Just make sure you have adequate documentation to explain when the layoff decision was made and why.

Not everything workers post online is protected

07/25/2011

No doubt you have heard about the Facebook posting cases in which employers have been sued for punishing employees for their social net­work­­­ing activities. Some decisions make it seem like employees can post anything they want. Fortunately, that’s not true.

‘Feeling’ bias in NASCAR? Court says ‘no go’

07/25/2011
When employees carry a chip on their shoulders, they may see dis­crimination in acts that are simply nor­mal workplace behavior. For­tu­nately, courts won’t allow dis­crimi­nation cases to go to trial if they’re based on nothing more than vague “feelings.”

Boss keeping an eye on underperformer? Make sure he’s not being unfairly singled out

07/22/2011
Watch out if a supervisor starts keeping extra-close tabs on an employee’s work in the wake of declining productivity or a poor review. You must make sure all employees in a similar situation get the same close attention.