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Discrimination / Harassment

Threatening to reduce employee’s bonus isn’t enough to justify quitting

04/03/2019
A grieving husband has lost a lawsuit that claimed he had no choice but to quit after his employer threatened to reduce his bonus if he continued to take time off to recover from a tragic personal loss.

An expensive anti-bias lesson for Havertown, Pa. country club

04/02/2019
Llanerch Country Club in Havertown, Pa. just learned a $30,000 lesson: Don’t discriminate on the basis of age, and certainly don’t tell your older employees that’s what you’re doing.

Fired harasser can’t collect unemployment

04/02/2019
If you have a robust harassment policy that prohibits even a single incident of unwanted touching, rest assured that a fired harasser won’t be eligible for unemployment benefits.

Beware retaliation after race bias complaint

04/02/2019
Employees who file internal discrimination complaints are protected from retaliation for doing so, even if the complaint turns out to be unfounded. Something like a demotion or significantly different job duties can be retaliation.

Paycheck Fairness Act clears House of Representatives

04/02/2019
The House of Representatives has passed the Paycheck Fairness Act, legislation first introduced in 1997 that would prohibit employers nationwide from asking job applicants about their past or current pay.

Employment law on Supreme Court docket

03/28/2019
In the three months before the Supreme Court’s 2018-2019 session closes, it will decide several employment law cases and may rule on the biggest issue the court could face this year: Whether Title VII of the Civil Rights Act bars discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

Court won’t referee popularity contest: Being disliked isn’t grounds for lawsuit

03/26/2019
Some workers seem to believe that any slight or negative comment is grounds for a discrimination lawsuit. Fortunately, that’s not the case.

Beware unreasonably tight deadlines for filing internal reports of sexual harassment

03/26/2019
The EEOC believes overly strict time limits tend to discourage reporting and absolve supervisors of responsibility for reporting. Plus, it may embolden harassers to repeat their harassment or escalate it.

HR must respond to physically demeaning acts

03/26/2019
When an employee comes to HR to complain about physically demeaning behavior directed her way, pay close attention. Demeaning behavior accompanied by sexist or racist comments, for example, increases the risk that the employee will file—and win—a hostile work-environment case.

Respect the results of outside investigations into complaints

03/26/2019
Be prepared to honor the findings of outside investigators you hire to get to the bottom of internal complaints. Accept the results and act immediately to remedy the situation.