Some employment cases turn on close calls, messy comparators, or shaky documentation.
This one turned on something simpler: an employee who admitted to a string of workplace misconduct and still tried to turn the termination into a discrimination, retaliation, and hostile-work-environment case. Continue reading
Employers that rely on arbitration agreements should pay attention to a recent Sixth Circuit decision. One plausible sexual-harassment claim can keep an entire lawsuit in court—even claims that would otherwise go to arbitration. Continue reading
For nearly a decade, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said denying a transgender employee access to the restroom matching that employee’s gender identity violated Title VII.
Last month, the agency reversed course.
Private employers should read the fine print before changing anything. Continue reading
That escalated quickly.
A university fired its HR director and asked him to return his work laptop. He refused for months. Campus police eventually obtained a felony arrest warrant. When the former employee finally showed up with the laptop, officers arrested him. He then sued for retaliation. Continue reading
Sometimes the accommodation request itself tells the whole story.
In a recent Fourth Circuit Rehabilitation Act decision, a federal air marshal asked to stay in a ground-based role permanently after medical conditions prevented her from flying. But in doing so, she also acknowledged that she could not perform the essential duties of the job she wanted to keep.
Can an employee secretly rack up overtime and sue for it later?
The Fifth Circuit says not without proof that the employer knew or should have known about those hours. Continue reading
Some employers try. The Fourth Circuit just explained why that trick doesn’t work for these federal discrimination claims. Continue reading
By now, you’ve likely seen coverage of the Missouri Attorney General’s lawsuit challenging Starbucks’ DEI initiatives.
The opinion’s value lies in its doctrinal clarity. It illustrates how established discrimination law applies when DEI-related practices are challenged — and what employers should consider to reduce legal risk when designing and implementing those programs. Continue reading
A manager allegedly makes racially inappropriate jokes. Months later, the company eliminates a position in a nationwide cost-cutting initiative and reduces an employee’s hours. So she sues for race discrimination, retaliation, and hostile work environment.
But she loses. Continue reading
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