Discrimination

  • June 23, 2025

    Assistant DA Says Race Bias Led To Pay, Treatment Disparity

    An assistant district attorney alleged in North Carolina federal court that her boss, District Attorney Michael Waters, discriminated against her and other Black employees by treating them unfairly and paying them less than white colleagues.

  • June 23, 2025

    EEOC Accuses Restaurant Of Sex Harassment, Pay Bias

    The owner of a Missouri restaurant repeatedly made lewd comments to a female manager, paid her less than a male colleague and punished her when she tried to ignore his advances, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleged in federal court.

  • June 23, 2025

    IT Co. Can't Get Justices To Review White Worker's Bias Suit

    The U.S. Supreme Court refused Monday to review a Third Circuit ruling that revived a proposed class action claiming a subsidiary of India-based Tech Mahindra unlawfully favored South Asian workers, despite the company's argument that the appeals court had deepened a circuit split.

  • June 20, 2025

    Employment Lawyers' Weekly DEI Cheat Sheet

    A coalition of Democratic attorneys general convinced a federal judge to block the National Institutes of Health from nixing grants over their purported connections to diversity, equity and inclusion programs, and lawmakers in North Carolina advanced legislation to ban DEI in state employment. Here, Law360 looks at DEI-related legal developments from the past week that employment attorneys should know.

  • June 20, 2025

    Wash. AG Says Hops Farm Favored H-2A Workers Over Locals

    Washington state's attorney general launched a lawsuit on Friday accusing a hops grower of illegally firing local employees, often women, and replacing them with foreign farmworkers, abusing the federal H-2A temporary visa program for seasonal agricultural labor.

  • June 20, 2025

    Victoria's Secret Narrows Ex-Worker's Sex Harassment Suit

    A Pennsylvania federal judge trimmed claims from a former Victoria's Secret sales associate's suit claiming her boss made sexual comments and touched her inappropriately on the job, ruling she didn't file the proper pre-suit charges to keep her local and state claims in play.

  • June 20, 2025

    DC Circ. Backs Morrison Foerster In Black Atty's Bias Suit

    The D.C. Circuit affirmed Morrison Foerster LLP's win in a lawsuit from a Black lawyer who did contract work for the firm, ruling Friday that he hadn't provided enough details to draw parallels between him and white colleagues he said received opportunities and privileges he was denied.

  • June 20, 2025

    Texas Judge Clears Lockheed Of Worker's Retaliation Claims

    Lockheed Martin escaped retaliation and discrimination allegations from a fired mechanical inspector, a Texas federal judge ruled Friday, concluding the worker had not proved that race bias or whistleblowing led to his termination two years ago.

  • June 20, 2025

    NY Forecast: Judge Weighs Toss Of Doctor's Retaliation Suit

    In the coming week, a New York federal judge will consider a medical clinic's motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by a former physician who claims he had his bonus withheld and was fired for complaining about conditions and practices at the clinic. Here, Law360 looks at this and other cases on the docket in New York.

  • June 20, 2025

    Judge Nixes Bias Carveout For Seventh-Day Adventist Orgs

    A Maryland federal judge narrowed a suit from two Seventh-day Adventist church organizations claiming the state's anti-employment bias law illegally prevents them from hiring workers based upon their faith, while also rejecting a bid to shield the organizations' hiring practices from the law.

  • June 20, 2025

    Courts Chip Away At Biden-Era EEOC Policies In 2025

    The first half of 2025 saw federal courts knock down key provisions of U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission regulations and guidance that aimed to safeguard pregnant workers and LGBTQ employees, but experts say the legal underpinnings of those policies are still intact.

  • June 20, 2025

    Trump Taps Atty Dropped By Biden For Eastern Ky. Fed. Court

    President Donald Trump has announced plans to nominate former Kentucky Solicitor General Chad Meredith to serve as a judge for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky.

  • June 20, 2025

    Law School Escapes Prof's Long-COVID Retaliation Suit

    A former Mercer University School of Law professor cannot show that the school refused to accommodate her long-COVID-19 symptoms, a Georgia federal judge ruled, saying her repeated requests to work remotely were not reasonable.

  • June 20, 2025

    Gymnastics Co. Cuts Deal In EEOC Sex Harassment Suit

    A gymnastics business will pay a former coach $50,000 to resolve a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit claiming the company's co-owner repeatedly propositioned her and other teen workers for sex, according to a Mississippi federal court filing.

  • June 20, 2025

    Justices Say ADA Doesn't Cover Retirees Who Can't Work

    The U.S. Supreme Court held on June 20 that a former firefighter with Parkinson's disease can't bring an Americans with Disabilities Act case over a rollback in her post-employment health benefits, reasoning that the law covers only those who can still fulfill their job duties.

  • June 20, 2025

    4 ERISA Cases To Watch In The 2nd Half Of 2025

    The U.S. Department of Labor's challenge to a pair of injunctions blocking Biden-era regulations that broaden who qualifies as an investment advice fiduciary under federal benefits law tops the list of cases benefits attorneys will be watching in the latter half of the year.

  • June 18, 2025

    Caterpillar Must Face Jury Over Ex-Worker's Age Bias Claim

    The Seventh Circuit reversed Caterpillar's summary judgment win over a former employee's age discrimination claim on Wednesday, saying a jury should decide whether the company reasonably placed the worker on a performance action plan that included a deadline that had already passed.

  • June 18, 2025

    High Court Concurrences Signal Hard Battle For Trans Rights

    U.S. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett joined the court's two most conservative members Wednesday to suggest laws that differentiate based on transgender status should be subject to the lowest level of judicial review, providing guidance to lower courts that will likely make it harder for litigants to vindicate trans rights.

  • June 18, 2025

    2nd Circ. Says NYU Langone Retaliation Verdict Wrongly Axed

    The Second Circuit reinstated a $700,000 jury verdict in favor of a former NYU Langone doctor who claimed her contract wasn't renewed after she complained about supervisors' sexist behavior, ruling Wednesday she'd presented enough evidence to support the jurors' decision.

  • June 18, 2025

    EEOC's Lucas Faces Pointed Questions On Trans Rights

    Acting U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Chair Andrea Lucas faced tough questions from Democratic lawmakers Wednesday about the agency scaling back enforcement efforts on behalf of transgender and nonbinary workers, as she defended the EEOC's alignment with the Trump administration's priorities.

  • June 18, 2025

    Mich. Panel Revives Contract Carpenter's Racial Bias Suit

    A Michigan appellate panel has reopened a Black man's employment discrimination lawsuit against a carpentry company where he claimed to have been called racial slurs by coworkers, saying a trial court was wrong to toss the suit solely because the worker was an independent contractor.

  • June 18, 2025

    Age Bias Taints Kansas Health Dept. Promotions, EEOC Says

    The Kansas Department of Health and Environment overlooked an older worker for promotions to more senior lab tech roles solely because of her age, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission told a federal court.

  • June 18, 2025

    Nursing Home Supervisor Mocked Older Workers, EEOC Says

    A New Mexico long-term care facility allowed employees over 40 to be belittled and held to different standards than younger workers, and workers who complained faced termination, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleged Wednesday in federal court.

  • June 18, 2025

    Senate Panel Sets Vote On Trump Nominees For EEOC, DOL

    A Senate panel announced on Wednesday a June 26 vote that will affect who will chair the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Trump administration's picks to lead the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division and employee benefits arm.

  • June 18, 2025

    Paralegal Says Firm Fired Her For Cancer Recurrence

    A paralegal alleged in North Carolina federal court that The Driscoll Firm PC fired her one day after she informed her superiors about the recurrence of her ovarian cancer, violating federal disability and state wage laws.

Expert Analysis

  • Justices Mull Sex-Based Classification In Trans Law Case

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    After the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in U.S. v. Skrmetti this week, it appears that the fate of the Tennessee law at the center of the case — a law banning gender-affirming healthcare for transgender adolescents — will hinge on whether the majority read the statute as imposing a sex-based classification, says Alexandra Crandall at Dickinson Wright.

  • Pa. Ruling Highlights Challenges Of Employer Arb. Appeals

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    A Pennsylvania federal court's recent ruling in Welch Foods v. General Teamsters Local Union No. 397 demonstrates the inherent difficulties employers face when seeking relief from labor arbitration decisions through appeals in court — and underscores how employers are faced with often conflicting legal priorities, says Daniel Johns at Cozen O'Connor.

  • 7 Ways To Prepare For An I-9 Audit Or Immigration Raid

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    Because immigration enforcement is likely to surge under the upcoming Trump administration, employers should take steps to ensure their staff is trained in employment eligibility verification requirements and what to do in the event of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement I-9 audit or workplace raid, say attorneys at Littler.

  • California Supreme Court's Year In Review

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    Attorneys at Horvitz & Levy highlight notable decisions on major questions from the California Supreme Court's last term, including voter initiatives, hostile work environment and the economic loss rule.

  • Disentangling Various Forms Of Workplace Discrimination

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    Pay inequity can be missed where it exists and misidentified due to incorrect statistics, leaving individuals to face multiple facets of discrimination connected by a common root cause, meaning correct identification and measurement is crucial, says Daniel Levy at Advanced Analytical.

  • Key Requirements In New Maryland Pay Transparency Laws

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    Although several jurisdictions now require pay transparency in job advertisements, Maryland's new law is among the broadest in the country, both in terms of what is required and the scope of its applicability, says Sarah Belger at Quarles & Brady.

  • Lessons From EEOC Case Of Fla. Worker Fired After Stillbirth

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    A recent federal court settlement between a Florida resort and a fired line cook shows that the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment Commission sees stillbirth as protected under the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, also providing four other important lessons, says Gordon Berger at Pierson Ferdinand.

  • Advising Employers As AI Meets DEI And Discrimination

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    Though companies can use artificial intelligence tools to develop more diverse and inclusive workforces, counsel should also prepare employers for how AI can stymie these efforts, provoke discrimination claims and complicate resulting litigation, says Emily Schifter at Troutman Pepper.

  • A Look At The Hefty Demands In Calif. Employer AI Draft Regs

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    California's draft regulations on artificial intelligence use in employment decisions show that the California Privacy Protection Agency is positioning itself as a de facto AI regulator for the state, which isn't waiting around for federal legislation, says Lily Li at Metaverse Law.

  • Federal Salary History Ban's Reach Is Limited

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    Though a newly effective Office of Personnel Management rule takes important steps by banning federal employers from considering job applicants' nonfederal salary histories, the rule's narrow applicability and overconfidence in the existing system's fairness will likely not end persistent pay inequities, says Margaret House at Kalijarvi Chuzi.

  • 2nd Circ. Hostile Workplace Ruling Widens Arbitration Pitfalls

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    The Second Circuit’s recent decision, affirming the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act applies to a worker whose workplace hostility claims arose before the law’s 2022 enactment, widens the scope of the law — and the risks of unenforceable arbitration agreements for employers, say attorneys at Hinshaw.

  • Title VII Compliance Lessons From Raytheon Age Bias Suit

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    A Texas federal court’s recent refusal to dismiss age discrimination claims from a former Raytheon employee, terminated after he admitted to acts that Raytheon says violated its harassment policy, nonetheless illustrates strategies employers can use to protect themselves when facing competing Title VII workplace obligations, say attorneys at Segal McCambridge.

  • How The Presidential Election Will Affect Workplace AI Regs

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    The U.S. has so far adopted a light-handed approach to regulating artificial intelligence in the labor and employment area, but the presidential election is unlikely to have as dramatic of an effect on AI regulations as it may on other labor and employment matters, say attorneys at Littler.