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Discrimination / Harassment

New California law mandates women on boards of directors

06/06/2019
Last September, California enacted Senate Bill 826, a pioneering law that requires every publicly held company headquartered in California to have at least one woman on its board of directors. Currently, a quarter of the state’s public companies have no female directors.

Sexist supervisor? Keep him away from victims, scrutinize his decisions and actions

06/06/2019
If you hear reports that a supervisor or manager with authority over female employees is making sexist statements, act immediately to put an end to it.

California bill would triple time to file bias claims

06/06/2019
A bill before the California Assembly would expand the amount of time employees have to file harassment or discrimination claims under the state’s Fair Employment and Housing Act from the current one year to three years after the last discriminatory act.

Before signing settlement, consider other filings

06/06/2019
Sometimes, an employee files several discrimination complaints about incidents that are allegedly related. If you’re thinking about settling one complaint, be aware that other, related claims may remain outstanding.

Pulled job offer: $80K case of pregnancy bias

06/06/2019
Just as you can’t fire an employee because she is pregnant, you can’t refuse to hire an applicant because she is expecting. Both are forms of sex discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and the Pregnancy Discrimination Act.

Snapshot: The closer the comparison, the smaller the pay gap

06/04/2019
Nationwide, women earn about 18% less than men. But pay differentials shrink dramatically the more women have in common with male counterparts.

Employers must advise courts of EEOC complaints

06/04/2019
A unanimous Supreme Court ruled June 3 that employers that are sued for employment discrimination under Title VII must tell the court early on whether the employee who is suing has also filed an EEOC complaint. If they don’t raise the issue then, they lose the right to do so.

Settlement: Dads have paid leave rights, too

06/04/2019
Banking giant JPMorgan Chase must pay $5 million to settle claims it discriminated against men who wanted to take time off after their children were born, but were granted less generous leave benefits than new moms received.

Beware ‘back-door’ bias claims under Section 1981

05/31/2019
A growing number of employees are taking a back-door approach to filing racial bias suits, one with the potential for a bigger windfall.

Court: Sexual orientation bias isn’t sex bias

05/31/2019
In a case with an unusual twist, a federal appeals court has ruled that Title VII’s prohibition against sex discrimination doesn’t extend to discrimination based on sexual orientation.