I’ll be the first to admit that, if I were watching this video in real time, I would have missed it. Missed what? A Chicago Cubs fan flashing what the team determined was an ‘offensive hand gesture associated with racism’ on live tv. That fan has since been banned from…
Image by mohamed Hassan from Pixabay I live and work about 100 miles northeast of Baltimore, MD. I don’t have my finger on the pulse of everything that’s going on in the Charm City. However, I do know that the City’s 50th mayor, Catherine Pugh, had a bad run there…
Image Credit: Pixabay.com (https://pixabay.com/illustrations/mobile-text-phone-sms-980030/) Here’s the thing. If you’re managers relax the rule for their direct reports, good luck trying to use that rule as a basis to terminate someone’s employment. Consider this recent Fourth Circuit opinion. It involves an African American employee — let’s call him ‘Plaintiff’ — who…
Uncredited [Public domain], via Wikimedia CommonsNot only that but two different employers disciplined the same dead person on the same day. Last Friday, I was on the road in Cleveland doing some anti-harassment training for managers and supervisors. Minutes before my second session, I glanced down at my phone to…
Public Domain, Link Many people forget that federal anti-discrimination law, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, contemplates reinstatement of an employee as a remedy for discrimination. But, before I get to that, I want to thank everyone who responded to yesterday’s blog post. If I did a…
Ischa1, Helder [Public domain], via Wikimedia CommonsA few days ago, I blogged about How does one of your employees actually prove discrimination in court? And I suppose that was a bit of a misnomer because there’s more to it. So, let’s talk about that today. Late last week, the Third…
Image Credit: Pixabay.com (https://pixabay.com/en/softball-baseball-ball-sport-game-372979/) We’re talkin’ softball. [cue music] Recently, I read about an EEOC settlement with a Maryland school that forked over $41,000 to settle a gender-discrimination claim. Here’s more from the EEOC’s press release: According to the suit, the [] School hired a male as head softball coach…
Execution Sling Hanging Hangman Knot Penalty Rope Many years ago, a man called me asking if I would represent him in a discrimination action against a company. Now, you know me. I’m a management-side lawyer. I write a blog called The Employer Handbook. But, then he mentioned that someone had…
Won’t you help little Ivy Meyer achieve her Girl Scout Cookies sales goal? It’s that time of year again. Coworkers have begun bombarding you with requests to purchase Girl Scout Cookies. So, in that spirit, let’s tackle: Whether unions will start organizing your workplace if you relax your no-solicitation policy…
See page for author [Public domain], via Wikimedia CommonsToday is Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Many will write about how our society continues to struggle with race relations and discrimination in the 50+ years since Dr. King’s famous “I have a Dream” speech (video; text). This past weekend didn’t help.…