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Discrimination / Harassment

Serial complainer cries harassment? Investigate every allegation

04/23/2013
An employee can lose a sexual har­­assment lawsuit and still win on retaliation if she can show she was fired for complaining about harassment. Don’t let that happen to you.

Is 40 really too old to rock?

04/23/2013
A 40-year-old vocal teacher is suing the School of Rock chain of music schools, claiming she was harassed because of her age and wrongfully terminated in retaliation for engaging in protected activities.

‘Me-too’ evidence doesn’t prove specific bias

04/23/2013
Here’s some good news for em­­ployers: Employees can’t use “me-too” evidence pointing to widespread discrimination against many classes of employees if their initial claim only alleges discrimination against a specific subgroup.

Being sole minority employee doesn’t mean special protection

04/22/2013
How often have you worried about disciplining the only employee who belongs to a particular protected class? You probably feared that the employee would sue, alleging bias. Relax. Being the only black … or Asian … or female employee doesn’t confer any particular advantage in a discrimination lawsuit.

Salty language but no complaints: Is it harassment?

04/22/2013
Q. Can vulgar language and jokes, etc., be considered harassment in the workplace if nobody actually files a complaint?

Never blame work deficiencies on pregnancy

04/18/2013
Here’s an important tip to pass on to all supervisors: Never speculate on why an employee may be performing poorly. Focus on the work and leave the psychoanalysis to experts. That’s especially true when you think an employee’s work may be affected by pregnancy or pregnancy-related complications.

Can refusing to renew contract trigger bias case?

04/18/2013

Q. As a small college, we employ quite a few adjunct in­structors, especially for night classes. They work on a term-to-term contract for specific courses. One instructor got a very poor review and we’d like to ease him out. He’s making noises about age discrimination. If we don’t renew his contract but instead use a younger, fresh-out-of-grad-school instructor, could he have a case?

Rights groups take aim at Target over criminal records

04/11/2013
The NAACP and the advocacy group Take Action Minnesota have accused retail giant Target of unfair hiring practices, alleging that the chain unnecessarily rejects job applicants based on their criminal records.

Take heart: EEOC doesn’t win every time

04/11/2013
The EEOC sometimes tries to test out new retaliation theories to trip up employers. Its most recent attempt didn’t work.

When it comes to bias, the customer’s not always right

04/03/2013
Watch out for the old adage that the customer is always right. Take it too literally, and you could be courting employment law liability. Handling customers who ask you to violate the law is tricky.