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Discrimination / Harassment

Philly’s Dechert law firm settles discrimination claims

04/30/2018
The giant Dechert law firm, founded in Philadelphia in 1875, has agreed to settle charges it fired two workers from its payroll department because of their age and gender.

Recent medical diagnosis? Consider accommodations

04/30/2018
Sometimes an employee discovers she may have a disability, or that it’s time to disclose one she had been keeping secret. How the employer responds to that information may prevent an ADA discrimination lawsuit—or trigger one.

Denial of basic training opportunity doesn’t rise to the level of sex discrimination

04/30/2018
Not every negative thing that happens amounts to retaliation or discrimination. Employees have to show that any “punishment” they experienced significantly changed the conditions of employment.

Ensure fair treatment after return to work

04/30/2018
The ADA and the Pennsylvania Human Rights Act protect disabled workers from harassment based on their disability. Make sure everyone, including co-workers and supervisors, understands they cannot punish a disabled employee for taking leave.

Minor annoyance doesn’t warrant lawsuit

04/30/2018
Few courts want to mediate petty disputes. Judges have more important matters to attend to. Just ask the judge who issued a caustic ruling in this recent case.

S.F. firefighters’ age bias suit goes down in flames

04/30/2018
The decade-long age discrimination litigation saga of 15 San Francisco firefighters has come to an end.

Worker taking high road can still quit & sue

04/26/2018
Typically, workers sue after being fired or otherwise subjected to an adverse employment action such as a demotion. But sometimes, aggrieved employees can quit and still sue, alleging that their working conditions were so severe that they had no choice but to leave.

Now more than ever, rein in sex harassment

04/26/2018
#MeToo spawned the multimillion-dollar #TimesUp fund that pays lawyers to help working-class women press sexual harassment claims in court. For employers, that means you can’t afford to ignore a single sexual harassment complaint.

Women much more likely to perceive pay bias

04/24/2018
Nearly a third of women (32%) do not think they are making the same pay as men in their organization who have similar experience and qualifications, compared to 12% of men.

Tough new supervisor? That doesn’t prove bias

04/19/2018
Sometimes, new bosses crack the whip harder than the previous supervisor did—and hand out harsher performance appraisals, too. But absent specific evidence to the contrary, new and more rigorous standards don’t usually signal that the new boss is motivated by discriminatory intent.