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Discrimination / Harassment

Never assume pregnant employee can’t work

06/15/2017
Here’s an important reminder to pass along to your organization’s supervisors: While pregnant employees who experience complications may be temporarily disabled and entitled to reasonable accommodations, never assume an employee has limitations just because she is pregnant.

KKK hoods lead to settlement in Houston retaliation case

06/13/2017
Downhole Technologies in Houston will pay $120,000 to settle charges it retaliated against a black employee after he complained of harassment.

$150k for the hair on his chinny, chin, chin

06/13/2017
U.S. Tubular Steel Products in Houston will pay a former applicant $150,000 in damages after it refused to accommodate his religious beliefs during a pre-employment drug test.

Document performance to beat bias claims

06/13/2017
When a fired employee claims he was the victim of discrimination, be prepared to show that the real reason for termination was poor performance. That requires keeping detailed documentation of any work deficiencies.

Invest in a timely, thorough investigation, or prepare to pay big damage award

06/12/2017
When employees complain about potential workplace discrimination and harassment, smart employers take it seriously. Nothing short of a thorough investigation will do. If you drop the ball and don’t take quick action, it could wind up costing your organization dearly.

Beware rescinding religious accommodation! You will probably have to explain why in court

06/07/2017
Employers should carefully document the process by which they deny or approve a religious accommodation. In particular, granting a request and then deciding to revoke it later may make it more difficult to defend in court.

Lawsuit: Flight attendants harassed for union roles

06/07/2017
An American Airlines flight attendant based in Philadelphia and a colleague from North Carolina are suing, claiming the airline failed to police online forums and Facebook pages it controls, permitting other employees to harass the women for their union activities.

Palo Alto firm pays big to settle discrimination charges

06/06/2017
Palantir Technologies in Palo Alto has agreed to settle charges it discriminated against Asian applicants who sought engineering positions at the tech firm.

Boss is equally demanding on everyone? That’s no excuse for employee lawsuit

06/06/2017
Some supervisors are more demanding than others. That’s no reason to sue, as long as the boss heaps demands equally on everyone, regardless of protected characteristics.

9th Circuit: Equal Pay Act allows past pay as excuse for current pay differences

06/06/2017
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has concluded that employers are free to use past pay as the starting point for a compensation offer as long as they can justify the practice as having a legitimate business purpose. That’s true even if using past pay ends up perpetuating past pay discrimination.