Suppose that several employees complain that a coworker is creating a “hostile work environment” because they were afraid that she (the coworker) was going to report them (the employees) for engaging in unspecified misconduct in the workplace. Can the employer respond by mandating an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) referral as…
A tenured professor in a university’s history department learns of “discrimination” and “marginalization” of Hispanic employees within the department. The university appoints him to an “Equity Committee” to address the problem. As part of his remediation efforts, the professor creates a “salary report” confirming instances of pay disparity among minority…
I enjoy blogging about employment law. But occasionally, perhaps after a long day, I wish some of these blog posts would write themselves. Last night, I got my wish. As an email subscriber to the press releases from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, I’ve noticed an unusual amount of…
An employee who claims retaliation in federal court must demonstrate they suffered treatment was “materially adverse,” i.e., something that could reasonably have dissuaded a reasonable worker from participating in a protected activity, like complaining about discrimination. Last night, I read a decision from a federal judge in New York weighing…
I mean, sure. It’s a free country. This isn’t Communist Russia. But if your company is concerned about a subsequent retaliation claim, read on. Today’s lesson comes courtesy of this Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals decision. The plaintiffs brought gender discrimination (equal pay) and retaliation claims after the defendants terminated…
No, it isn’t. I know this because, among other things, I read this Fifth Circuit decision last night after the Philadelphia Eagles beat the New England Patriots. The plaintiff, a pharmacy technician, was pregnant when her employer hired her. Then, she chose to disclose her pregnancy to her supervisor a…
A director for a major transit authority applied for two internal promotions. She didn’t get either. Feeling that she was more qualified than either successful candidate, the director reported discrimination internally and later filed a Charge of Discrimination with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Among other things, she alleged…
On August 7, 2018, a worker sent an email. The email stated, “I fear retaliation” and “my colleagues and I have been the victims of continuous harassment, both sexual and emotional.” On August 9, 2018, just two days later, the company fired her. How do you think that turned out?…
The plaintiff in this federal court decision I read last night didn’t exactly come off as a model employee. According to the decision, others reported that the plaintiff, a security officer and transportation driver, took extended lunch breaks, made unauthorized stops while making product deliveries (including a car dealership to purchase a…
If, like me, you deal with HR compliance and employment law issues regularly, you’ve yelled the title of this blog post at others. (And if you don’t deal with HR compliance and employment law issues regularly, dude, WTH are you doing here?) I thought of this last night as I…