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Discrimination / Harassment

EEOC lawsuits take aim at pregnancy bias in hiring

02/03/2021
There has never been a better time to remind hiring managers that they may not discriminate against pregnant job applicants. The EEOC has made enforcement of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act a priority. Two recent cases show how seriously the EEOC takes this issue.

11th-hour changes could reduce EEOC suits

02/03/2021
Days before President Biden was inaugurated, the outgoing EEOC chair, Republican Janet Dhillon, made substantial changes that will take time for Democrats on the commission to undo.

Contracts can’t rush ADA, ADEA deadlines

01/28/2021
Check your handbook for language that sets premature deadlines for employees to file discrimination complaints under the ADA and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. Anything less than the time frames set out in the laws is unenforceable, a federal appeals court has ruled. In most cases, that is 300 days.

Yang named OFCCP director

01/28/2021
Former EEOC Chair Jenny Yang has been appointed to lead the Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, the agency that enforces federal anti-discrimination laws at companies doing business with Uncle Sam.

Biden names Democrats to serve as EEOC chair, vice chair

01/26/2021
The two Democrats serving on the EEOC have been promoted to lead the agency, which enforces the nation’s anti-discrimination laws.

Biden acts to reverse Trump civil rights rules

01/26/2021
Just hours after being sworn in on Jan. 20, President Joe Biden moved to overturn Trump administration policies affecting how the government addresses workplace diversity and bias in the federal workforce.

New COVID concern: ‘Maskual harassment’

01/21/2021
A new study by UC Berkeley and One Fair Wage found that the pandemic has exposed many employees—particularly service and restaurant workers—to face mask-based harassment.

EPA: Employer must prove pay bias didn’t relate to sex

01/21/2021
Some employers assume that employees who sue under the Equal Pay Act must prove that sex caused the disparity. That’s backwards. Courts want employers to prove the reason for the disparity was something other than sex.

Engaged bosses can counter workplace bias

01/21/2021
There’s news both good and bad in a recent Gallup poll on the prevalence of discrimination in the workplace.

EEOC says some foreign employees need not receive OWBPA notices

01/19/2021
Employers that are normally subject to the requirements of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act do not have to notify overseas workers who are not U.S. citizens of rights included in the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act, according to an EEOC opinion letter issued Jan. 14.