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Discrimination / Harassment

EEOC & NJ AG partner for Youth@Work campaign

03/30/2009

The EEOC and the Civil Rights Division of the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General are partnering to launch a campaign to educate New Jersey youth and employers about workplace discrimination.

EEOC: Job bias claims set new record in 2008

03/30/2009

The EEOC says job bias claims of all kinds hit record levels during federal fiscal year 2008. A total of 95,402 complaints were filed during the year ending Sept. 30, 2008. The figure constitutes a 15% increase over 2007.

Shopper’s Vineyard settles race discrimination suit

03/30/2009

The Shopper’s Vineyard wine superstore in Clifton has agreed to settle a race discrimination case after the EEOC filed suit on behalf of a black front-line manager who was terminated during an alleged downsizing.

Wal-Mart settles drivers’ race bias suit for $17.5 million

03/30/2009

Wal-Mart wasn’t wearing its smiley face when it agreed to pay a class of African-American truck driver applicants $17.5 million in a race discrimination suit. The drivers alleged Wal-Mart failed to hire and promote black drivers in proportion to the number who applied.

BK hands over $85,000 after boss seeks sex from teen worker

03/30/2009

A Clemmons Burger King is the latest fish caught in the EEOC’s teen sexual harassment net. Burger King will pay $85,000 to a teenage employee who was subject to unwanted touching, sexual advances and requests for sexual favors from the store’s general manager.

Promoting? Avoid any appearance of favoritism

03/26/2009

Choosing which of your employees to promote is always difficult, since at least one employee will be disappointed. That can lead to friction or even a lawsuit. That’s why it’s crucial for the entire process to look—and be—as transparent as possible. You simply must avoid any appearance of favoritism.

Refer to the rule book: Hiring and promotion policies belong in your employee handbook

03/26/2009

Employers with a good employee handbook that explicitly sets out the rules for handling hiring, promotions and raises have a huge advantage if there’s ever a complaint that those processes have been unfairly applied. Clearly written policies are one great way to counter the “he told me” claims …

Set up correspondence log tracking all incoming mail, faxes and e-mails

03/26/2009

It’s common sense: You can retaliate only if you know about whatever it is you are supposedly retaliating against. If you can show you never knew an employee was engaged in an alleged protected activity, it becomes impossible for an employee
to win a retaliation claim.

Murphy Ford created self-fulfilling Murphy’s Law

03/26/2009

Murphy Ford of Chester will pay $244,000 to settle sexual harassment complaints from three female employees. According to a complaint filed with the EEOC, the women complained to management about the dealership’s service manager who used to grab his private parts and make sexually explicit comments.

‘100% healed’ policy is 100% wrong, court says

03/26/2009

The federal court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania recently ruled that UPS’ policy of requiring injured employees to be fully healed before they can return to work constitutes discrimination under the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act.