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Discrimination / Harassment

Know your responsibilities under the EEOC’s final GINA regs

12/21/2010
The EEOC has published its final regulations implementing Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA). They take effect on Jan. 10. The new regulations clarify when employers may be liable for acquiring genetic information.

Harassment claim? Dragging feet creates more trouble

12/21/2010
Courts are losing patience with employers that ignore sexual harassment instead of dealing with it right away.

You must try to stop harassment–even if it’s clients or customers doing the harassing

12/21/2010

You know you have to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment. If prevention doesn’t work, then you have an obligation to put an end to it. But what if you work in a setting where sexual harassment “comes with the territory”? From the court’s perspective, that doesn’t matter.

EEOC’s final GINA regs emphasize employee notification

12/21/2010
The EEOC has issued final regulations implementing the employment provisions of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA), clarifying employer compliance issues and offering model language to help employees understand their rights under the law.

Ho Ho No: Don’t force wearing of Santa hats

12/17/2010
During last year’s holiday season, gift wrappers at a Belk department store were asked to wear Santa hats and aprons. But Myra Jones-Abid, a Jehovah’s Witness, refused. Belk took back the Santa hat and gave Jones-Abid a pink slip. The EEOC presented the company with a lawsuit …

Is a policy still a policy if it’s not in writing?

12/15/2010

Will a court acknowledge a company “policy” that doesn’t exist on paper? One court recently did—even though the policy wasn’t written anywhere—because the policy was being followed by all managers. Still, when in doubt, it’s best to write it out.

West Palm eatery settles ADA HIV-by-association lawsuit

12/13/2010
When managers at Callaro’s Prime Steak and Seafood Restaurant learned that an employee’s relative was HIV-positive, it asked the worker to take an AIDS test. Now the West Palm Beach restaurant is paying the employee $10,000 to settle the resulting EEOC disability discrimination lawsuit.

Firing employee? Require the presence of at least 2 managers during discharge meeting

12/13/2010
Unfortunately, many lawsuits come down to one person’s word against another’s. That’s powerful incentive for a company rule requiring at least two managers to participate in any discharge. Reason: They can back each other up.

Courts crack down on lawsuits against entities not named in EEOC complaints

12/13/2010

Eventually, your organization will be blindsided by a discrimination lawsuit that seems to come out of nowhere. In fact, it may hit years after the alleged bias occurred. That means you may long ago have discarded the documents that could clear the company. But courts are growing impatient with employees who launch such sneak attacks, as this recent 11th Circuit decision shows.

Pestering employees about retirement may backfire badly

12/09/2010
A federal district court recently addressed the issue of pretext in an age discrimination case. In Goodpaster v. Materials Handling Equipment (No. 09-0059, ND IN, 2010) the court held that management’s repeated and coercive inquiries about retirement to a 59-year-old employee may imply age discrimination.