Discrimination

  • October 09, 2024

    Ex-USPS Worker Wins $75K Verdict In Race Harassment Suit

    The U.S. Postal Service must pay a Black former custodian $75,000 in damages after a Minnesota federal jury found the agency didn't do enough to stop colleagues from directing racist slurs, threats of violence and other harassment at him and his wife.

  • October 09, 2024

    NJ Law Firm Gets Partial Win In Dispute With Ex-Employees

    The arbitration pacts that two former employees at a New Jersey law firm filed cover their discrimination claims, a New Jersey state court judge ruled, handing the Bergen County-based personal injury firm a partial win in the workers' wage and bias suit.

  • October 09, 2024

    Automotive Interior Co. Settles EEOC Workforce Data Suit

    An automotive interior supply company struck a deal with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to end the agency's suit claiming it spurned its legal responsibility to report demographic data about its workforce, an Alabama federal court filing said.

  • October 09, 2024

    Novant Ex-Exec's Counsel Wins $154K In Fees For Race Case

    Counsel for a former Novant Health Inc. executive who won $4.3 million after accusing the company of firing him during a diversity push because he was white got $154,000 in attorney fees for successfully defending the award on appeal, slightly less than what was requested.

  • October 09, 2024

    NFL Settles Racism, Retaliation Suit From Reporter Jim Trotter

    Award-winning sports journalist Jim Trotter and the National Football League on Wednesday agreed to settle his federal lawsuit accusing the league and its media arm of retaliating against him for persistently raising concerns about discriminatory hiring.

  • October 08, 2024

    Vince McMahon Accuser Wants Freedom To Air 'Toxic' Culture

    A woman accusing former World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. executive chair Vince McMahon in Connecticut federal court of pressuring her into performing sex acts in exchange for an entry-level job has asked both McMahon and the company to voluntarily waive nondisclosure agreements, saying she and other accusers could help reform WWE's "toxic and sexualized culture."

  • October 08, 2024

    5th Circ. Upholds Texas A&M's Win In Ex-Prof's Race Bias Suit

    The Fifth Circuit backed Texas A&M University-Kingsville's win in a Mexican American former professor's suit claiming he was denied tenure out of racial bias, ruling Tuesday that his case lacks proof of discrimination and that his scholarship fell short of tenure requirements.

  • October 08, 2024

    MLB Faces New Bias Suit After Settlement Talks Fail

    A former minor league umpire who claims he was sexually harassed by a female umpire filed an expanded suit Tuesday against Major League Baseball after settlement talks failed.

  • October 08, 2024

    SHRM Can't Beat Black Egyptian Worker's Discrimination Suit

    The Society for Human Resource Management can't escape a Black Egyptian ex-employee's lawsuit claiming she was fired for opposing her supervisor's favoritism toward white workers, with a Colorado federal judge ruling Tuesday that a jury should analyze the organization's rationale that she was let go for missing deadlines.

  • October 08, 2024

    DC Circ. Appears Iffy About Reviving Bias Suit Against Union

    The D.C. Circuit seemed reluctant Tuesday to reopen a retired government employee's discrimination suit against a federal employee union, with several judges suggesting that her claims don't belong in federal court.

  • October 08, 2024

    5th Circ Says Ex-Postal Worker's Harassment Suit Falls Short

    The Fifth Circuit upheld a win for the USPS in a retired post office clerk's suit claiming she faced discrimination and harassment on the job due to her age and disability, saying she didn't face "anything close" to a hostile work environment.

  • October 08, 2024

    New High Court Case May Spell Doom For 'Majority' Bias Test

    The U.S. Supreme Court has taken up a case that experts predict will be used to jettison a legal test that's made it harder for some people in "majority" groups to bring Title VII cases, potentially leading to a rise in so-called reverse discrimination lawsuits. Here are three things to keep an eye on if the high court changes the legal landscape.

  • October 08, 2024

    Airlines Say Chicago Sick Leave Law Would Impact Business

    An organization representing the largest U.S. airlines urged an Illinois federal court to keep afloat its challenge to Chicago's new paid sick leave law, saying its claims that the statute would impact flight prices and routes are fact-intensive and should proceed to discovery.

  • October 08, 2024

    Divorced-Dads Firm Beats Fired Paralegal's Retaliation Suit

    A Kansas federal jury on Monday sided with a law firm that bills itself as an advocate for divorced fathers, shutting down a suit from a paralegal who claimed she was fired for speaking up about sexual harassment by one of the firm's attorneys.

  • October 08, 2024

    College Admins Beat Ex-Prof's Suit Over Race-Based Study

    Cleveland State University faculty defeated a former professor's suit alleging he was unlawfully fired for publishing research asserting intelligence differences between white and Black people, with an Ohio federal judge finding he was let go for abusing access to restricted data, not his research subject.

  • October 08, 2024

    Harvard Says Ex-Coach's Pay, Retaliation Suit Falls Flat

    Harvard University has urged a Massachusetts federal judge to dismiss a former ice hockey coach's suit alleging she was paid less than her male counterparts and was forced into retirement, arguing the claims were mostly made after the statute of limitations had expired and failed to make a connection to an action taken by the school.

  • October 08, 2024

    Boarding School Strikes Deal To End COVID Race Bias Suit

    A boarding school agreed to settle a suit from an Asian American electrician who said he was fired after raising concerns that he was the victim of racism related to COVID-19, staving off a trial scheduled for November in Pennsylvania federal court.

  • October 07, 2024

    NC's Durham Inks DOJ Deal Over Racially Biased Hiring

    The city of Durham, North Carolina, agreed Monday to pay $980,000 and adjust its hiring practices to resolve U.S. Department of Justice civil rights allegations that a written test used by the city's Fire Department in evaluating potential hires unintentionally discriminates against Black candidates.

  • October 07, 2024

    Pepsi Employee Sues Over Health Plan's 'Tobacco Surcharge'

    A Pepsi employee has hauled the snack and beverage multinational into New York federal court, alleging in a proposed class action that the company unlawfully imposes a "tobacco surcharge" on employees who use tobacco products while failing to adequately notify employees that they can instead join a company wellness program.

  • October 07, 2024

    Paralegal Can't Seek Punitive Damages In Bias Trial

    A former Cordell & Cordell PC paralegal claiming she was fired over sexual harassment complaints can't ask a jury for punitive damages, a Kansas federal judge found during an ongoing trial, adopting the firm's position that she hasn't shown any willful violations.

  • October 07, 2024

    NJT Cop Can't Overturn Firing Over Positive THC Test

    A New Jersey appeals panel won't upend a decision by the New Jersey Transit Corp. police chief terminating an officer for testing positive for THC, rejecting the officer's argument that the chief wrongly deviated from an administrative law judge's determination that the test was unreliable.

  • October 07, 2024

    Grocery Co. Won't Get High Court Review Of Gender Bias Suit

    The U.S. Supreme Court announced Monday it won't review the revival of a gender bias case brought by a woman who said she was fired from her management role in a grocery store chain after her supervisor repeatedly said that management jobs were "too stressful" for women to handle.

  • October 07, 2024

    Guard Who Said Manager Dissed His Niece Keeps $1.2M Win

    The Third Circuit backed on Monday a $1.2 million verdict for a white former jail guard who said he was fired after complaining that a supervisor called his biracial niece "a little monkey," rejecting the county's arguments that the evidence presented didn't merit the award.

  • October 07, 2024

    Mich. Says Local Courts' ADA Compliance Is Not Its Job

    A proposed class of disabled attorneys lacks standing to pursue civil rights claims against Michigan alleging courthouses were inaccessible, the state has told a federal judge, arguing it is not responsible for local facilities and is otherwise protected by sovereign immunity under state disability laws.

  • October 07, 2024

    DOL Office Taps Agency Veteran To Lead Southeast Region

    The acting director of the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs said Monday that a 16-year OFCCP veteran is now its Southeast regional director.

Expert Analysis

  • 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.

  • Handbook Hot Topics: Remote Work Policies

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    Implementing a remote work policy that clearly articulates eligibility, conduct and performance expectations for remote employees can ease employers’ concerns about workers they may not see on a daily basis, says Melissa Spence at Butler Snow.

  • No Blank Space In Case Law On Handling FMLA Abuse

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    Daniel Schwartz at Shipman & Goodwin discusses real-world case law that guides employers on how to handle suspected Family and Medical Leave Act abuse, specifically in instances where employees attended or performed in a concert while on leave — with Taylor Swift’s ongoing Eras Tour as a hypothetical backdrop.

  • 'Miss Manners' Scenario Holds Lessons On Pregnancy Bias

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    A recent Washington Post "Miss Manners" column, in which a pregnant employee expressed concern about her boss's admonitions against having children, provides an opportunity to evaluate what exactly constitutes pregnancy discrimination, says Robin Shea at Constangy.

  • Cos. Should Plan To Protect DEI Before Supreme Court Ruling

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    With the U.S. Supreme Court apparently poised to reject affirmative action in education with its pending decisions in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard and SFFA v. University of North Carolina, employers should begin preparing their response to the likely ensuing challenges to corporate diversity programs, says Keisha-Ann Gray at Proskauer.

  • Water Cooler Talk: Bias Lessons From 'Partner Track'

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    Tracey Diamond and Evan Gibbs at Troutman Pepper chat with CyberRisk Alliance's Ying Wong, about how Netflix's show "Partner Track" tackles conscious and unconscious bias at law firms, and offer some key observations for employers and their human resources departments on avoiding these biases.

  • Accommodating Disabled Employees Is Rarely A Hardship

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    Since tools for granting disabled employees' reasonable accommodation requests are readily available and affordable — as illustrated by a recent U.S. Department of Labor Office of Disability Employment Policy report — it should be much harder for employers to prove undue hardship in granting these requests, says Kamran Shahabi at Valiant Law.