Sex Category Archives — Page 5 of 24 — The Employer Handbook Blog Published by Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Employment Lawyer

Can a lateral transfer be discriminatory? The Supreme Court is about to weigh in.

July 5, 2023 | by Eric B. Meyer

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Last week, the Supreme Court made it more difficult for employers to establish that an employee’s request for a religious accommodation under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 creates an undue hardship.

But there’s much more to Title VII than just religious accommodations. And the Supreme Court isn’t done with the statute yet. Last week, it agreed to determine whether Title VII prohibits discrimination in transfer decisions absent a separate court determination that the transfer decision caused a significant disadvantage. Continue reading

Can blasting Eminem’s music create a hostile work environment? A federal appellate court thinks so.

June 8, 2023 | by Eric B. Meyer

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At a workplace in Nevada, “sexually graphic, violently misogynistic” music from artists like Eminem and Too $hort “blasted from commercial-strength speakers placed throughout the warehouse, the music overpowered operational background noise and was nearly impossible to escape.” Employees complained about it “almost daily.” But management brushed those complaints aside and defended the music as motivational. This went on for almost two years.

Then eight former employees sued. They claimed that routinely playing “sexually graphic, violently misogynistic” music throughout its warehouse created a hostile work environment in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Continue reading

I’m naturally skeptical when an employee claims sexual orientation bias against straight people.

April 17, 2023 | by Eric B. Meyer

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So when the plaintiff in this federal court decision I read last night cited as evidence of her employer’s heterosexual animus that her gay coworker received a cake and party by gay supervisors on his 30th work anniversary, whereas she did not receive cake or party for the same occasion, my Spidey senses were really tingling. Continue reading

He asked her to babysit and shot her in the butt with a rubber band. So she sued for hostile work environment.

March 28, 2023 | by Eric B. Meyer

noun-rubber-band-15286-1024x1024 I’ve seen weaker lawsuits. But let me explain why the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals recently affirmed that asking a female colleague to babysit, once hitting her posterior with a rubber band, and even failing to use her proper title is not enough to create a hostile work environment based on gender. Continue reading

Being denied coverage to use the bathroom (and a bunch of other stuff that isn’t discrimination)

March 22, 2023 | by Eric B. Meyer

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When employees allege discrimination, they must prove an employer’s discriminatory motive and connect it to a particular adverse employment decision. An adverse action requires evidence of a significant change in employment status, benefits, or pay. Usually, the proof comes in the form of failure to hire, a firing, failure to promote, reassignment with significantly different responsibilities, or lost pay or benefits.

But, from a federal court decision I read last night, I’ve got a list of eight items that are not adverse enough on which to base a disparate treatment claim. Continue reading

THIS action fell just short of possible discrimination and retaliation. (Whew!)

March 15, 2023 | by Eric B. Meyer

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The plaintiff in this action has worked as a human resource specialist. She claimed that, beginning in 2019, her male supervisor made unwelcome sexual comments to her, and, when she reported those comments to his direct supervisor, they were ignored. So the plaintiff says she filed an Equal Employment Opportunity (“EEO”) complaint. According to the plaintiff, nearly two years later, she faced a proposed letter of reprimand.

A proposed what now? Continue reading

Today is Equal Pay Day. And here’s why, for the 14th time, the reintroduced Paycheck Fairness Act won’t pass.

March 14, 2023 | by Eric B. Meyer

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In recent years, many states have passed equal pay laws.

At the federal level, well… Continue reading

Here is what makes equal pay claims so difficult to win

January 23, 2023 | by Eric B. Meyer

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When a longtime government agency employee sued her employer for violating the Equal Pay Act, she argued that the defendant paid her male coworker more for “essentially the same job.” In her mind, their roles “were complementary and [their] duties equal.”

But that’s not enough to show prevail under the Equal Pay Act. Continue reading

I’m not done with yesterday’s post yet. You need to hear about the retaliation claim!

January 19, 2023 | by Eric B. Meyer

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On Wednesday, I blogged about a woman who worked as a “helper” for a construction company. She alleged that she had to endure misogynist comments from her general manager, who told her in front of others that, since she had “t*** and an a**,” she could not perform certain functions of her job that would otherwise position her for advancement within the company.

But that isn’t the half of it. Continue reading

Is it sex discrimination to assign a woman different tasks than a man in the same job?

January 18, 2023 | by Eric B. Meyer

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A woman received a promotion at a construction company from laborer to helper. Helpers either work on the ground or “at elevation.” The woman had experience working at elevation at another company. She wanted to work at elevation again in her new job to improve her skills because advancements would bring pay raises and advance her craft.

But there was a problem. Continue reading