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Discrimination / Harassment

Long Island firefighters win benefits in age-bias settlement

07/08/2010
Long Island’s Bayville Fire Department will allow volunteer firefighters to accrue length-of-service credit past age 65 as part of an age discrimination settlement with the EEOC. The volunteers accrue service time and then receive bonuses based on that time. The payments essentially amount to a pension.

Are we in trouble? We just demanded that one of our employees lose weight

07/08/2010
Q. I own a restaurant where we require the waitresses to wear revealing outfits. Recently, we placed an employee on a probationary period as a result of her having gained weight. We advised her that if she did not lose 10 pounds in 60 days, we would terminate her employment. Have we done anything illegal?

Use social networks to your advantage in employment disputes

07/08/2010

I’ve long preached that employees should not enjoy an expectation of privacy in information they voluntarily place on the Internet, including social networks like Facebook. Now according to one federal court in Indiana, it is also fair game for employers to use social networking information when they have to defend against harassment and discrimination lawsuits.

Crack down hard on hostile slurs and symbols

07/08/2010
Are your workers prone to crude language and behavior? If so, start making spot inspections of work sites. Your goal: Stamping out harassment that could make your organization liable for a hostile environment.

When employee complains about discrimination, be alert for signs bosses are retaliating

07/08/2010
Has an employee complained about a supervisor’s alleged discrimination? If so, carefully review any important employment decisions the supervisor subsequently makes. Be alert for potential retaliation.

Try to accommodate employee’s religion– but don’t automatically agree if it’s a burden

07/08/2010

Some employees think that any restriction on their exercise of religious expression or dress is automatically illegal. That’s not true. In fact, when faced with an employer’s request to remove an article of clothing such as a head scarf or other head covering, the employee must state that doing so would interfere with practicing her religion and that she would like an accommodation.

Create a fair and consistent system for dishing out overtime hours

07/05/2010
Do you have a system that allows all employees in the same job category an equal shot at earning overtime pay? If not, consider setting up a fair system for distributing that extra work. Otherwise, you may find yourself facing a discrimination lawsuit.

DOJ grant to fight employment bias along Mexican border

07/02/2010
Rep. Rubén Hinojosa, who represents the 15th District of Texas in Congress, recently announced that the Justice Department has awarded $59,546 to fund a project aimed at reducing employment discrimination against Texans authorized to work in the United States regardless of their national origin.

Dallas hospital owes $3.6 million for discrimination

07/02/2010
A federal jury in Dallas has awarded Dr. Naiel Nassar more than $3.6 million after he sued the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (UTSW) at Dallas for religious and race discrimination.

Beware discussions concerning employee longevity

07/02/2010
Casual business conversations can come back to haunt you if some comments imply that you could save money without so many long-term employees.