Discrimination

  • June 13, 2024

    EEOC Accuses 2 Employers Of Gender Identity, Gay Bias

    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in federal courts Thursday accused an Alabama hotel of firing an employee because his style didn't conform to male stereotypes and an Illinois flooring company of failing to stop employees from making homophobic remarks, in violation of federal anti-discrimination law.

  • June 13, 2024

    7th Circ. Backs Chicago Restaurant's Win Over Sex Bias Suit

    The Seventh Circuit on Thursday upheld a Chicago restaurant's defeat of a lawsuit alleging it fired a host for complaining that co-workers and customers touched her inappropriately and made offensive comments, saying she couldn't overcome the restaurant's assertion that she was terminated for poor performance.

  • June 13, 2024

    Brewpub Reaches $115K Deal To Exit EEOC Retaliation Suit

    A restaurant and brewery agreed Thursday to pay $115,000 to resolve a lawsuit from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission accusing it of firing a Black cook for flagging verbal abuse of Black and Hispanic employees in the workplace, according to a filing in Georgia federal court.

  • June 13, 2024

    2nd Circ. Revives Conn. Town Worker's Sex Harassment Suit

    The Second Circuit gave a Connecticut town employee another shot Thursday at her suit claiming she endured years of harassing letters from a contractor who accused her of having sex with subordinates, saying a reasonable jury could find the town should have done more to intervene.

  • June 13, 2024

    McCarter & English Atty Named Frier Levitt Employment Head

    A former McCarter & English LLP partner of over 20 years with deep experience representing healthcare clients has moved to Frier Levitt to head the national firm's employment practice group, Frier Levitt announced Thursday.

  • June 13, 2024

    Delta Dodges Female Mechanic's Promotion, Pay Bias Suit

    Delta Air Lines Inc. defeated a mechanic's lawsuit claiming she was denied promotions and paid less than male colleagues because she's a woman, with a Utah federal judge ruling she hadn't shown she was treated differently from any comparable co-worker.

  • June 13, 2024

    Sheetz Asks To Ship EEOC Background Check Suit To Pa.

    Sheetz urged a Maryland federal court to send to Pennsylvania a suit lodged by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission over the convenience store chain's use of criminal background checks to make hiring decisions, saying that state is a more convenient location for everyone involved.

  • June 12, 2024

    FDIC Head Must Go To Change Status Quo, GOP Reps. Say

    House Republicans on Wednesday criticized Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chair Martin Gruenberg for not immediately resigning in the wake of a probe of the agency's workplace culture, but some Democrats took issue with the scope of a report on the investigation's findings while applauding his rumored successor.

  • June 12, 2024

    TV News Managers Blamed For Pride Memo Sue Nexstar

    Two former television news managers in western Michigan sued their former employer, Nexstar Media Group, this week, saying the company turned them into scapegoats amid backlash against an internal memo suggesting reporters dial back Pride Month coverage and include "both sides of the issue." 

  • June 12, 2024

    Fired SpaceX Workers Say Musk Runs Co. 'In The Dark Ages'

    Eight former SpaceX employees on Wednesday became the latest to sue the company and CEO Elon Musk alleging a hostile and abusive workplace that demeans women and LGBTQ+ people, saying in California state court they were unlawfully fired when they objected to his conduct.

  • June 12, 2024

    NY AG, Firms Beat Cuomo Subpoenas In Sex Harassment Suit

    Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo can't force Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP and Vladeck Raskin & Clark PC to produce information about an investigation into sexual misconduct accusations that forced him to resign, a federal judge ruled Wednesday, finding the firms were acting under the state attorney general's authority.

  • June 12, 2024

    9th Circ. Questions Arbitration Carveout For AmEx Workers

    A Ninth Circuit panel seemed inclined Wednesday to force four white former American Express employees to arbitrate their proposed class action claims alleging race bias.

  • June 12, 2024

    6th Circ. Says Worker's Anti-Vax Bias Suit Prematurely Tossed

    A trial court was too tough on a Christian job seeker when it threw out her religious bias lawsuit against an in-home healthcare provider that she alleged turned her away for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine, the Sixth Circuit ruled Wednesday.

  • June 12, 2024

    Home Depot Asks To Settle Claim It Shushed Worker On Probe

    Home Depot reached a proposed settlement to an allegation that it violated federal labor law by telling a Minneapolis worker to keep quiet about the company's investigation into his claims of racist treatment by a coworker, according to paperwork presented to a National Labor Relations Board judge.

  • June 12, 2024

    Ex-Wendy's Worker Drops Suit Over Breast-Pumping Space

    A former Wendy's employee who accused the company and multiple related entities of failing to provide proper private space for workers to pump breast milk despite federal labor laws requiring them to do so has permanently dropped her claims from Ohio federal court.

  • June 12, 2024

    Associate Sues Kaufman Dolowich Alleging Disability Bias

    A former associate with national law firm Kaufman Dolowich & Voluck LLP claims in a federal lawsuit that attorneys at the firm's Philadelphia office discriminated against him after he asked for accommodations for his hearing impairment.

  • June 12, 2024

    Robust EEOC Amicus Program Tackles AI, High Court Rulings

    The amicus briefs the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lodged in the first six months of 2024 included a rare district court filing in a suit against a maker of artificial intelligence-powered hiring tools and appellate missives on the reach of an April U.S. Supreme Court ruling. Here’s a look at five EEOC amicus briefs that caught discrimination lawyers' attention.

  • June 12, 2024

    Solar Staffing Cos. Escape Black Workers' Race Bias Suit

    Renewable energy industry staffing companies defeated a lawsuit claiming they used the pandemic as an excuse to fire dozens of Black workers, with a Texas federal judge saying the former employees couldn't overcome the companies' explanation that the workers had violated COVID-19 safety measures.

  • June 12, 2024

    Marketing Co. Can't Sink ADA Suit Over Wellness Program

    An Illinois federal judge refused to toss a proposed class action brought by marketing firm workers who allege a medical exam for the company's wellness plan violated disability bias law, saying their argument that the test wasn't genuinely voluntary was strong enough to stay in court.

  • June 11, 2024

    Seattle Port's Ex-Police Takes Wrongful Firing Case To Trial

    A former Port of Seattle police chief told a Washington state jury on Tuesday that he was wrongfully fired from his job over false claims that he retaliated against an officer, accusing the port of hiring an independent investigator to assemble a damning report in anticipation of a lawsuit over the termination.

  • June 11, 2024

    Dem Bill Would Cancel 2018 High Court Ruling On Arbitration

    House and Senate Democrats reintroduced legislation Tuesday that would do away with mandatory workplace arbitration agreements, a move they said would counteract a 2018 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that said requiring solo arbitration in worker disputes didn't violate federal labor law.

  • June 11, 2024

    Texas, Mont. Sue HHS Over ACA Trans Discrimination Rule

    Texas and Montana filed suit against the Biden administration seeking to halt its rule clarifying the application of the Affordable Care Act's nondiscrimination protections to gender identity, saying the new regulations infringe on states' autonomy and force them to violate their own laws.

  • June 11, 2024

    Raytheon Openly Prefers Younger Job Applicants, Suit Says

    Raytheon for years has violated age bias law by advertising positions explicitly meant for recent college graduates despite public statements acknowledging that the aerospace company needs thousands of additional workers, a 67-year-old job applicant alleged Tuesday in Massachusetts federal court.

  • June 11, 2024

    4th Circ. Says Md. Development Entity Immune From Bias Suit

    The Fourth Circuit on Tuesday upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit alleging a Maryland economic development corporation fired a Black employee for complaining she'd been denied opportunities because of her race and gender, saying a lower court correctly ruled that the state organization is immune from her claims.

  • June 11, 2024

    Lacrosse Coach Loses Bias Suit After Getting Cozen Booted

    A Pennsylvania federal judge tossed a lawsuit Tuesday from a high school lacrosse coach who said her contract wasn't renewed because of gender, age and disability bias, finding the school district showed that its decision stemmed from concerns about her professionalism.

Expert Analysis

  • Fostering Employee Retention Amid Shaky DEI Landscape

    Author Photo

    Ongoing challenges to the legality of corporate diversity, equity and inclusion programs are complicating efforts to use DEI as an employee retention tool, but with the right strategic approach employers can continue to recruit and retain diverse talent — even after the FTC’s ban on noncompetes, says Ally Coll at the Purple Method.

  • Justices' Title VII Ruling Requires Greater Employer Vigilance

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Muldrow v. St. Louis ruling expands the types of employment decisions that can be challenged under Title VII, so employers will need to carefully review decisions that affect a term, condition or privilege of employment, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • 6th Circ. Bias Ruling Shows Job Evaluations Are Key Defense

    Author Photo

    In Wehrly v. Allstate, the Sixth Circuit recently declined to revive a terminated employee’s federal and state religious discrimination and retaliation claims, illustrating that an employer’s strongest defense in such cases is a documented employment evaluation history that justifies an adverse action, says Michael Luchsinger at Segal Mccambridge.

  • Navigating Harassment Complaints From Trans Employees

    Author Photo

    The Eleventh Circuit's recent decision in Copeland v. Georgia Department of Corrections, concerning the harassment of a transgender employee, should serve as a cautionary tale for employers, but there are steps that companies can take to create a more inclusive workplace and mitigate the risks of claims from transgender and nonbinary employees, say Patricia Konopka and Ann Thomas at Stinson.

  • Employer Considerations Before Title IX Rule Goes Into Effect

    Author Photo

    While the U.S. Department of Education's final rule on Title IX is currently published as an unofficial version, institutions and counsel should take immediate action to ensure they are prepared for the new requirements, including protections for LGBTQ+ and pregnant students and employees, before it takes effect in August, say Jeffrey Weimer and Cori Smith at Reed Smith.

  • 5 Employer Actions Now Risky After Justices' Title VII Ruling

    Author Photo

    Last week in Muldrow v. St. Louis, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that harm didn't have to be significant to be considered discriminatory under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, making five common employer actions vulnerable to litigation, say Kellee Kruse and Briana Scholar at The Employment Law Group.

  • Breaking Down EEOC's Final Rule To Implement The PWFA

    Author Photo

    Attorneys at Littler highlight some of the key provisions of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's final rule and interpretive guidance implementing the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which is expected to be effective June 18, and departures from the proposed rule issued in August 2023.

  • How To Prepare As Employee Data Reporting Deadlines Near

    Author Photo

    As filing deadlines approach, government contractors and private companies alike should familiarize themselves with recent changes to federal and California employee data reporting requirements and think strategically about registration of affirmative action plans to minimize the risk of being audited, say Christopher Durham and Zev Grumet-Morris at Duane Morris.

  • Address Complainants Before They Become Whistleblowers

    Author Photo

    A New York federal court's dismissal of a whistleblower retaliation claim against HSBC Securities last month indicates that ignored complaints to management combined with financial incentives from regulators create the perfect conditions for a concerned and disgruntled employee to make the jump to federal whistleblower, say attorneys at Cooley.

  • Why Corporate DEI Challenges Increasingly Cite Section 1981

    Author Photo

    As legal challenges to corporate diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives increase in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on race-conscious college admissions last year, Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act is supplanting Title VII as conservative activist groups' weapon of choice, say Mike Delikat and Tierra Piens at Orrick.

  • Inside OMB's Update On Race And Ethnicity Data Collection

    Author Photo

    The Office of Management and Budget's new guidelines for agency collection of data on race and ethnicity reflect societal changes and the concerns of certain demographics, but implementation may be significantly burdensome for agencies and employers, say Joanna Colosimo and Bill Osterndorf at DCI Consulting.

  • New Wash. Laws Employers Should Pay Attention To

    Author Photo

    The Washington Legislature ended its session last month after passing substantial laws that should prompt employers to spring into action — including a broadened equal pay law to cover classes beyond gender, narrowed sick leave payment requirements for construction workers and protections for grocery workers after a merger, say Hannah Ard and Alayna Piwonski at Lane Powell.

  • The Shifting Landscape Of Physician Disciplinary Proceedings

    Author Photo

    Though hospitals have historically been able to terminate doctors' medical staff privileges without fear of court interference, recent case law has demonstrated that the tides are turning, especially when there is evidence of unlawful motivations, say Dylan Newton and Michael Horn at Archer & Greiner.