Last year, I discussed (here) a case in which the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued an employer for retaliation under Title VII. Now, retaliation is the most common claim employment discrimination claim. But, what made this particular claim unusual was the EEOC’s attack on the employer’s use of knife-wielding…
I picture it happening something like this. But, with inflatable sumo suits, and some Spandau Ballet, or maybe Pantera, and yeah… Ok, not exactly. According to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in Porter v. Houma Terrebonne Housing Authority (opinion here), it went more like this: Tyrikia Porter worked for the Houma Terrebonne Housing…
And when the employer practically admits as much at a deposition = hella-stupid retaliation Yet, that’s what apparently happened, as described in the recent Michigan federal court decision in Brown v. Oakland County. Before I discuss that decision, I have a little contest for you. There is a great* employment-law decision involving…
Well, you can forget about that “place at the table.” That’s for sure. ***ducks thought-leader mashed potatoes and change-agent stuffing*** [music] An EAP consultant gets fired for supporting an employee. In DeMasters v. Carilion Clinic (opinion here), Mr. DeMasters, an employee assistance program consultant, claimed that he helped another employee initiate and pursue…
In a decision issued last week (here), the National Labor Relations Board ruled that “the filing of an employment-related class or collective action by an individual employee is an attempt to initiate, to induce, or to prepare for group action and is therefore conduct protected by Section 7 [of the National Labor Relations Act].”…
Last year, I channelled Bill Clinton in this blog post about how courts rarely recognize a single incident or two as creating what the law deems a hostile work environment. Yeah, about that. Even a few isolated comments can create a hostile work environment. In Boyer-Liberto v. Fontainebleu Corp. (opinion here), the full panel…
Folks, let me give you a little free Friday HR pro tip: If a female employee complains to a female manager that another male manager is sexually harassing her, it’s not ok to for the female manager to respond thusly, “He’s a guy and you work with guys. Ignore it and…
When I think about retaliation, I think about that time I plastic-wrapped the judicial toilets after losing a motion to compel an employee who gets fired after complaining about discrimination to an HR Manager or the EEOC. These actions epitomize the “opposition” and the “participation” clauses of Title VII of the…
Geez! What’s gotten into me this week? Even by The Employer Handbook editorial standards, which are lower than Title VII’s religious accommodation undue hardship test. [I’ll be here all week. Sorry.] First, a 1000+ word blog post on ADA telework, followed by two cheeky posts on bad interview questions and the…
Not exactly a happy workplace trinity, but it’s what fuels The Employer Handbook. That and Jolt-Cola Bombs. The plaintiff in this case claimed that she was sexually harassed by her male supervisor for over a year. The court’s opinion details alleged comments and groping in vivid detail. (No recap here. I plan to keep my…