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Discrimination / Harassment

Ohio employers make ‘Best Places to Work for GLBT’

11/01/2007

Five Ohio employers made the 2007 list of “Best Places to Work for GLBT Equality,” a ranking of employers’ policies affecting gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) employees …

As ye ask, so shall ye receive

11/01/2007

It’s OK to pay employees more if they negotiate harder during an interview, an Ohio court recently affirmed in a lawsuit against the Grande Pointe residential care facility in Richmond Heights …

Family-Responsibility discrimination: A growing trend

11/01/2007

The EEOC has issued new enforcement guidance concerning disparate treatment of workers with caregiving responsibilities—or “family-responsibility discrimination.” The guidelines are designed to help determine whether a particular employment decision is discriminatory. Family-responsibility discrimination is not a new type of discrimination, but rather an application of the existing discrimination laws to a situation that is drawing increasing attention …

Performance appraisals help in court as well as on the job

11/01/2007

Performance appraisals are valuable tools to help put struggling employees back on track. But a low rating also can spur poor performers to consider legal action: Many discrimination suits have been launched on the wings of a poor performance appraisal. Fortunately, employers with solid appraisal systems usually have built-in defenses against such charges …

Track rejected job offers to show lack of discrimination

11/01/2007

Employees who begin to feel less valued at work often look for some underlying reason. Often they focus on suspected age, sex, national origin or some other form of discrimination. Then, when a layoff or reorganization costs them their jobs, they sue. Frequently they’ll argue that they should have been offered open positions, even if it would have meant receiving a smaller salary than they had been making …

Reduce discrimination risk by having same person hire, fire

11/01/2007

If possible, it makes sense to have the same person provide hiring and firing input. Here’s why: Logically, it makes no sense for someone to hire an applicant despite apparent protected characteristics (e.g., gender, race, religion) and then fire that person because of those same characteristics. Although it may not be enough to get a case dismissed, courts will consider it and it may persuade a jury in your favor …

Good and accurate records key to winning lawsuits early

11/01/2007

The sooner you resolve lawsuits, the better. That’s why it’s important to anticipate problems and plan for them. Take, for example, employee records. If you can easily produce statistical information on the race, sex, age or other protected characteristics of your employees, you often can persuade an attorney fishing for a lawsuit that the waters are empty.

Niketown settles with black workers to end class-Action suit

11/01/2007

The Niketown store on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile will pay more than 400 current and former black employees a total of $5 million as part of the settlement in a class-action discrimination suit. Niketown also will pay $2.6 million in attorneys’ fees and be subject to court monitoring …

Casino Queen faces race discrimination lawsuit

11/01/2007

Twenty-two current and former workers for Casino Queen of East Saint Louis filed a federal lawsuit alleging the casino disciplines black workers more harshly than white workers and favors white employees in giving job assignments and promotions …

Illinois makes it easier for workers to sue

11/01/2007

A newly passed law, H.B.1509, recently amended the Illinois Human Rights Act to allow employees to sue employers for discrimination and harassment in state courts. Until now, employees were confined to filing charges either through the federal EEOC or the Illinois Department of Human Rights …