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Discrimination / Harassment

Good news: EEPA does not include retaliation claims

09/26/2008

North Carolina employers have one less thing to worry about: A federal trial court recently decided the North Carolina Equal Employment Practices Act (EEPA) does not allow employees to file separate retaliation claims on top of initial discrimination complaints …

Take steps to stop pervasive anti-female attitudes, practices

09/24/2008

When you think of a sexually hostile work environment, the scenario usually involves crude sex talk, bawdy photos and other prurient activities. But those aren’t the only markers of a hostile environment. In fact, a pervasive anti-female attitude that has nothing to do with sex can lead to a lawsuit, too …

Ban obviously racist comments, or prepare to face EEOC discrimination lawsuit

09/24/2008

Some talk doesn’t belong at work. Period. If you don’t ban racist comments, you’ll probably face an EEOC lawsuit …

Lukewarm response to racism leads to walkout

09/24/2008

Eighteen workers filed a complaint with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission (PHRC) against retail hardware supplier Crown Bolt in August to protest racist graffiti in the Carlisle warehouse where they worked …

Can we require male employees to keep their hair cut short?

09/24/2008

Q. May we require male employees’ hair be a certain length, or is that discrimination? Also, may we prohibit beards? …

Give managers a 3-phrase script to respond to harassment complaints

09/23/2008

When one of your employees confides in her manager that she’s being harassed by a co-worker, what will that manager say? Hopefully, it’ll be something more constructive than “Go along with it."

Is it permissible to ask women about gaps in their employment histories?

09/23/2008

Q. Can we ask female applicants about lengthy gaps in their employment histories? I’m afraid that doing so might make it look as though we are digging into personal or family issues that could lead to a claim of gender bias …

Was worker claiming harassment part of the problem?

09/22/2008

Employers are supposed to make sure that harassment doesn’t happen—and stop it if it does. But sometimes, the employee complaining the loudest may actually be part of the problem. If that’s the case, the responsible thing to do is to stop all the harassment, from all the participants …

Take fast action to investigate apparent rogue supervisor

09/19/2008

There’s no substitute for boots on the ground when it comes to protecting employees from supervisors with hidden discriminatory agendas. If you ignore the warning signs of supervisor bias and leave the “bad boss” in place, it’s probably just a matter of time before you find yourself responding to a lawsuit …

If process was fair, don’t second-guess your hiring decision

09/19/2008

Hiring decisions are tough, especially when you add the worry over whether rejected applicants may think you discriminated against them. But as long as you don’t actively conceal critical facts about whom you hired, rejected applicants have to move fast to sue …