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Discrimination / Harassment

Ensure disciplinary documents contain enough detail to justify harsh punishment

11/30/2019
Details are especially important when different employees break similar rules and you punish some more harshly than others. You need to be able to show why you fired one employee while another whose misconduct was identical was allowed to keep his job.

Hairstyles become latest flashpoint for grooming disputes

11/25/2019
Hair is becoming the new battleground over employer expectations and employee compliance. Increasingly, state and local authorities have stepped in, siding with employees who challenge grooming policies.

Pay bias settlement to cost Goldman Sachs almost $10M

11/25/2019
Investment banking colossus Goldman Sachs & Co. has agreed to a massive settlement with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs to resolve charges it discriminated against women and minorities in its pay practices.

Budget constraints may be legit reason for reassignments

11/25/2019
Courts generally grant great leeway when an employer cites budget cuts or other economic justifications for personnel moves. Employees challenging such decisions need to do more than say they believe discrimination played a part. They must have some evidence.

Think twice before firing immediately after employee has filed EEOC complaint

11/25/2019
If you suddenly fire a worker who just filed an EEOC complaint and can’t explain why, expect a retaliation lawsuit. That’s because filing an EEOC complaint is protected activity, so the timing alone looks suspicious.

Don’t delay: Act on termination decision ASAP

11/25/2019
When you have good reason to fire a worker, it makes little sense to put off acting on your decision. That’s especially true if it’s for poor performance. Otherwise, if the employee’s work improves in the interim and he has decided to complain about discrimination, your subsequent termination may look like retaliation.

Bullying complaint doesn’t trigger Title VII protection

11/21/2019
Employees who file internal discrimination complaints based on age, race, sex or other protected characteristics are protected from retaliation. But if the complaint is more general—such as that the supervisor is a bully—that’s not enough.

Beware holiday harassment at hotel party

11/21/2019
’Tis the season for holiday party planning, which means ’tis the season to prepare for potential harassment lawsuits. Remember, just because the party isn’t at work or during work hours, doesn’t mean you’re not liable for harassment.

‘OK, boomer!’ not OK at work

11/21/2019
Employment lawyers are warning that “OK, boomer!”—the viral meme-phrase that caught fire on social media earlier this month as a tool for millennials to dismiss baby boomers’ opinions—could be used as evidence in age-discrimination lawsuits by older workers.

$20 billion case could reset race bias bar

11/21/2019
A $20 billion lawsuit before the U.S. Supreme Court could dramatically change what contractors—and employees, potentially—have to prove in order to win a race discrimination case.