Discrimination

  • September 23, 2024

    Nonprofit, Union Say Janus Doesn't Apply To NYC Dues Fight

    Two New York City public defenders cannot leverage the U.S. Supreme Court's Janus ruling to stop paying their union because the ruling only applies to public employees and they're technically employed by a nonprofit, argued their employer, union and the city in a motion to dismiss their lawsuit.

  • September 23, 2024

    AFL-CIO Backs Firefighter's Benefits Suit At High Court

    The AFL-CIO urged the U.S. Supreme Court Monday to overturn an Eleventh Circuit order finding that the Americans with Disabilities Act doesn't protect certain retirees from disability bias, arguing it erred when finding a Florida firefighter with Parkinson's couldn't contest a policy stripping her healthcare in retirement.

  • September 23, 2024

    6th Circ. Upends Ohio City's Defeat Of Ex-Cop's Age Bias Suit

    The Sixth Circuit restored on Monday a former police officer's lawsuit alleging he was given menial tasks and targeted for scrutiny because he was in his 50s, saying a reasonable jury could conclude the increased surveillance altered his employment conditions.

  • September 23, 2024

    NCAA Gets HBCU Race Bias Suit Tossed, For Now

    An Indiana federal judge has granted the NCAA's motion to dismiss a lawsuit from a basketball player who claims the organization's academic program is discriminatory, but left the door open for an amended complaint.

  • September 23, 2024

    Wind Turbine Co. Inks $125K Deal In EEOC Race Bias Suit

    A wind turbine manufacturer has agreed to pay $125,000 to resolve a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit alleging a Black employee was regularly called racial slurs at work and threatened with violence.

  • September 23, 2024

    Ex-Littler Shareholder Joins Thompson Coburn In St. Louis

    Thompson Coburn LLP has added a former Littler Mendelson PC labor and employment shareholder with over 15 years of experience to its St. Louis office as a partner.

  • September 23, 2024

    Fabiani Cohen Says Equity Partner Can't File Employee Claim

    Fabiani Cohen & Hall LLP told a New York federal judge on Friday that its equity partner's employment suit is motivated by her desire to increase her profit share of the firm, arguing that her status as an equity owner means she can't be considered an employee for the purposes of her claims.

  • September 23, 2024

    California City Worker Loses Bias Suit Over Racist Nickname

    A federal jury sided with a California city in a race bias lawsuit filed by a Black maintenance worker who alleged that a supervisor and colleagues violated federal and state law by repeatedly referring to him by the name of a Mexican comic book character.

  • September 23, 2024

    Data Co. Ousted Exec Who Reported Harassment, Suit Says

    A former sales director for data storage company WekaIO says she suffered sexual harassment and retaliation and was ultimately forced to leave the "male-dominated" company after a sham investigation, according to a lawsuit filed Monday.

  • September 23, 2024

    Raymond James Pushes Ex-VP's Sex Bias Suit Into Arbitration

    A Florida federal judge kicked a fired Raymond James and Associates executive's sex bias suit to arbitration Monday, concluding that a federal law prohibiting mandatory arbitration of sex misconduct claims didn't apply because her harassment allegations lacked "plausibility."

  • September 23, 2024

    FEMA Looks To Escape Atty's Bias And Retaliation Suit

    The U.S. government has asked a federal judge to toss a suit alleging two agencies pushed out an Asian American attorney following her complaints that a male colleague harassed her, arguing she failed to state a claim in her "behemoth," 190-page complaint.

  • September 20, 2024

    Hyundai Unit Unlawfully Fired Cannabis Patient, Suit Says

    A subsidiary of Hyundai was hit with a discrimination lawsuit by a former employee in Connecticut who claims her usage of marijuana to manage her post-traumatic stress disorder was the reason for her termination.

  • September 20, 2024

    Judge Doubts Amazon Targeted Workers On Military Leave

    A Washington federal judge pressed an ex-Amazon employee on Friday to back up allegations that she was fired for taking military leave, saying the termination appeared to be an administrative "oops" on the company's part that it has since corrected by offering reinstatement and back pay.

  • September 20, 2024

    6th Circ. Revives Christian Challenges To LGBTQ Bias Law

    The Sixth Circuit revived two lawsuits Friday from Christian organizations challenging a Michigan civil rights law barring discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, saying they demonstrated a plausible fear of enforcement if they publicized their religious views.

  • September 20, 2024

    EEOC Suit Gives Employers 'Road Map' For Navigating PWFA

    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has officially begun flexing its enforcement muscles on one of the nation's newest civil rights laws, and experts say employers need to get up to speed on the unique accommodation analysis required under the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act. Here are three takeaways from the EEOC's first PWFA lawsuit.

  • September 20, 2024

    EEOC Says Battery-Maker's Medical Release Rule Flouts ADA

    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued a battery manufacturer and energy storage company Friday in Michigan federal court, claiming it fired an office worker after he fractured his wrist because he wasn't 100% healed, even though he said he could do his job.

  • September 20, 2024

    Amicus Brief Shows EEOC Homing In On Disparate Impact

    A recent U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission amicus brief arguing that a workplace vaccination mandate may have unlawfully disadvantaged Black workers highlights the agency's focus on seemingly impartial workplace policies that yield skewed results, experts said. 

  • September 20, 2024

    Hospital Barred Male Worker From Delivery Unit, EEOC Says

    An Arkansas hospital improperly stopped a male surgical technician from assisting with childbirth even though he was hired to do so, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said in a new lawsuit. 

  • September 20, 2024

    Walmart Inks $100K EEOC Deal After Firing Epileptic Worker

    Walmart has agreed to hand over $100,000 to settle a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit filed in Arizona federal court claiming it fired a cashier because she missed too many shifts because of her epilepsy.

  • September 20, 2024

    Fla. Restaurant Axed Asst. Manager Over Age, EEOC Says

    A Daytona Beach, Florida, seafood restaurant fired an assistant manager about a month after hiring her because she was 57 years old and it wanted to hire someone younger, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission told a federal court Friday.

  • September 20, 2024

    NY Forecast: 2nd Circ. Hears Unsealed Arbitration Award Row

    This week the Second Circuit will consider a janitorial company's challenge to a lower court order that allowed an arbitration award in a dispute over what a janitor alleged was the company's misclassification of janitors as independent contractors to become public. Here, Law360 explores this and another employment case on the docket in New York.

  • September 20, 2024

    Microsoft Accused Of Racial Bias By Ex-Diversity Professional

    A former Microsoft employee tasked with helping advance diversity and inclusion efforts has filed a discrimination suit in Washington state court accusing the tech giant of an "ongoing campaign of intimidation, discrimination, and retaliation" against its Black female employees.

  • September 20, 2024

    King & Spalding Fights Bias Suit Over Summer Program

    King & Spalding LLP is urging a Maryland federal judge to toss a discrimination suit filed by a straight white woman who says she was dissuaded from applying to a summer associate program open only to "diverse" applicants, arguing the student suffered no injury since she did not apply.

  • September 20, 2024

    NY Phil Can Sideline Musician Accused Of Rape, It Tells Court

    A New York Philharmonic trumpeter accused of raping his colleague and an oboist accused of handing the woman a spiked drink can't prove that the orchestra sidelining them violated an arbitrator's ruling, the orchestra and the musicians' union told a New York federal judge, asking him to toss the musicians' suits.

  • September 20, 2024

    Ellenoff Grossman Denied Arbitration In Ex-Atty's Firing Suit

    A New York federal judge has sent a former Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP associate's suit saying she was fired for protesting sexual harassment back to state court and denied the firm's motion to compel arbitration of the matter.

Expert Analysis

  • Employer Tips For Complying With NYC Weight Bias Ban

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    To comply with New York City’s new law that prohibits weight or height discrimination in employment and housing decisions, employers will not only need to update workplace handbooks, anti-bias policies and training materials, but also job postings, applications and descriptions, say Jonathan Wexler and Taylor McCann at Vedder Price.

  • Water Cooler Talk: Office Drug Abuse Insights From 'Industry'

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    Tracey Diamond and Evan Gibbs at Troutman Pepper chat with Squarespace general counsel Larissa Boz about how employees in the Max TV show "Industry" abuse drugs and alcohol to cope with their high-pressure jobs, and discuss managerial and drug testing best practices for addressing suspected substance use at work.

  • How New Pregnancy, Nursing Laws Surpass Prior Protections

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    Employers must understand how the new Pregnant Workers Fairness and PUMP Acts build on existing federal workplace laws — and they will need to make key updates to ensure compliance, say Alexandra Garrison Barnett and Leigh Shapiro at Alston & Bird, and Kandis Wood Jackson at McKinsey & Co.

  • 4th Circ. Ruling Outlines Defense Against Retaliation Claims

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    The Fourth Circuit's surprising decision in Johnson v. Global Language Center eschewed the low standard typically applied to demonstrating protected activities under Title VII and could affect internal complaint processes and the retaliation defenses available to employers, say Tory Summey and Zack Anstett at Parker Poe.

  • An Overview Of OFCCP's Religious-Exemption Reset

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    The recent rescission of a Trump-era rule that gave government contractors broader latitude under federal anti-discrimination rules doesn't prohibit employment decisions based on religious faith, but clarifies the factors a company must consider when seeking a religious exemption, say Zev Grumet-Morris and Christopher Durham at Duane Morris.

  • FMLA Confusion Persists Despite New DOL Advisory

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    A recent U.S. Department of Labor advisory opinion provides some clarity regarding the Family and Medical Leave Act's handling of holiday weeks, but the FMLA remains a legal minefield that demands fact-specific analysis of each employee's unique situation, says Nicholas Schneider at Eckert Seamans.

  • 2 Steps To Improve Arbitrator Diversity In Employment Cases

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    There are prevalent obstacles in improving diversity among arbitrator ranks, but in the realm of employment-related disputes, there are two action items practitioners should consider to close the race and gender gap, say Todd Lyon and Carola Murguia at Fisher Phillips.

  • Attendance Policies, ADA May Be In EEOC's Crosshairs

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    While a recent matter before the Eleventh Circuit primarily involved the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s subpoena power, the case's factual details suggest that the agency wants to determine whether certain attendance policies violate the Americans with Disabilities Act, potentially on a nationwide scale, say Anne Yuengert and William Manuel at Bradley Arant.

  • High Court Ruling Wouldn't Change Federal Affirmative Action

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    If the U.S. Supreme Court's eventual decision in two cases concerning affirmative action indicates that using race or ethnicity as a factor in college admissions is illegal, it would align with how the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs already enforces nondiscrimination regulations for government contractor hiring, say Joanna Colosimo and Evan Szarenski at DCI Consulting.

  • Title IX Damages Outlook 1 Year After High Court Ruling

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    Federal courts have been extending the holding of last year's U.S. Supreme Court decision, Cummings v. Premier Rehab Keller, to disallow emotional distress damages under Title IX, but students and educators suing educational institutions for gender discrimination can still recover monetary damages under alternate theories, say attorneys at Sanford Heisler.

  • State Laws Could Complicate Employer Pandemic Protocols

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    If the recent wave of state bills that would prevent employers from implementing certain safety protocols in a future pandemic is signed into law, companies — especially those that operate across state lines — will be forced to completely rewrite their pandemic playbooks to avoid compliance issues and discrimination claims, says Karla Grossenbacher at Seyfarth Shaw.

  • Remote Work Considerations In A Post-Pandemic World

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    Now that the public health emergency has ended, employers may reevaluate their obligations to allow remote work, as well as the extent to which they must compensate remote working expenses, though it's important to examine any requests under the Americans With Disabilities Act, say Dan Kaplan and Jacqueline Hayduk at Foley & Lardner.

  • An Employer's Overview Of AI Legislation In 5 Jurisdictions

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    Many employers are likely aware of the July 5 enforcement date for New York City's artificial intelligence law, but there are also proposals in Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Vermont and Washington, D.C., and a comparison illustrates the emerging legislative trends for AI employment decision tools, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.