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Discrimination / Harassment

HR protected—But only if it actually helped file bias claims

05/01/2008
What happens if management wants to fire or otherwise punish an employee for discriminatory reasons, and HR objects? Can an HR professional who is then fired for refusing to play ball proceed to file her own EEOC retaliation or protected-activity claim? …

Equal Pay Act claims may hit employers by surprise

05/01/2008
Employers may think last year’s U.S. Supreme Court Ledbetter decision means employees can’t wait years before complaining about sex discrimination if the issue is pay. Surprise! It’s not always true …

Gov. Paterson accused of race discrimination

05/01/2008
Incoming Gov. David Paterson hadn’t even taken his oath of office before he was hit with allegations of race discrimination during his term as Senate Democratic leader. Joseph Maiorello, a former Senate minority photographer, has filed an EEOC lawsuit alleging Paterson fired him because he is white …

Allied Aviation pays $1.9 million to settle discrimination case

05/01/2008
Allied Aviation Services Inc., a New York-based provider of fuel services, settled an EEOC lawsuit for $1.9 million, following claims of persistent race discrimination at its facility at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport …

Brooklyn bookseller pays $180,000 for discrimination

05/01/2008
Michael Schmuely, owner of Books for Less, a wholesale bookseller in Brooklyn, will pay $180,000 to 21 former employees to settle a federal race discrimination lawsuit. The lawsuit alleged that Schmuely frequently used the “n” word and referred to the warehouse as a “plantation” …

Tell supervisors: No pregnancy comments allowed

05/01/2008
It seems simple enough: No one should make cracks or comments about an employee’s pregnancy. Still, supervisors and managers often say things they shouldn’t, which can come together to form the basis for a Pregnancy Discrimination Act lawsuit …

Keep selection process objective to ensure bias-Free hiring

05/01/2008
Human factors sometimes cloud the judgment of hiring managers—and could end up costing an organization if it finds itself on the losing end of a failure-to-hire lawsuit. That’s why it’s crucial to institute checks that prevent a hiring committee or manager from imposing subjective criteria on applicants …

Diverse workplace can raise reverse-Discrimination risk

05/01/2008
Not many employers discriminate against members of the majority, but that doesn’t mean it never happens. In fact, white employees do file reverse-discrimination lawsuits, claiming they have been singled out for poor treatment or harassment due to their race. Ironically, a work force that is more diverse may be at greater risk for such lawsuits …

In discrimination cases, don’t bet on Round 1 knockout

05/01/2008
Discrimination cases typically have two stages. First, the employee must show that he is a member of a protected class, was qualified for the job he held, suffered an adverse employment action and a similarly situated person not in the same protected class was treated more favorably. Some federal trial judges recently construed the “similarly situated” standard very restrictively …

OSU-Mansfield librarian sues over religious persecution

05/01/2008
Scott Savage, a former Ohio State University-Mansfield reference librarian, is suing the university over discrimination he says he suffered because of his Christian beliefs …