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Discrimination / Harassment

Are there California laws analogous to the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act?

03/01/2008
Q. I know that as an employer, I have to abide by GINA and not discriminate based on genetic information. But are there any state statutes addressing this matter?

Ensure your harassment policy includes requirement to promptly report violations

03/01/2008
Does your company’s sexual harassment policy include a provision that tells employees they must promptly report alleged sexual harassment? If it doesn’t, consider adding such a clause. The wording may help if an employee waits to report that her supervisor was allegedly harassing her …

Making exceptions to the rule can turn the exception into the rule

03/01/2008
Organizations create rules for a reason—mainly to ensure order and fairness. So when a manager or supervisor bends the rules just for some people, he or she may be setting up the organization for a lawsuit. Essentially, the exceptions become the rule, and employees who don’t benefit may sue, alleging discrimination based on a protected characteristic …

Cobb megachurch leader surrenders to authorities

03/01/2008
Archbishop Earl Paulk, longtime pastor of the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit at Chapel Hill Harvester Church, in January pleaded guilty to felony perjury in a case that stems from a lawsuit by a former church employee, who alleged the minister manipulated her into an affair …

Must employees receive a warning before termination?

03/01/2008

If employees are at-will workers, you can fire them for any reason or no reason at all, as long as it’s not discriminatory. But, as a new ruling shows, supervisors should resist that quick-trigger urge if that employee recently voiced a discrimination complaint …

Congrats on winning! Do you really want attorneys’ fees?

03/01/2008
Sometimes, when an employee files a frivolous suit, it’s tempting to seek payback. If you succeed in getting the litigation dismissed, why not insist the losing employee pay attorneys’ fees and court costs? Before you throw good money after bad, consider whether you want your attorneys to spend even more time trying to get the employee to cough up …

Paper trail cuts both ways if it shows unequal discipline

03/01/2008
You know you should document problems and violations before disciplining an employee who previously performed well. You create a paper trail showing warnings, counseling and efforts to get the employee back on track. But if the employee you disciplined can show that others with the same shortcomings got off, that paper trail may come back to haunt you …

360° evaluations help when charge is ‘Failure to get along’

03/01/2008
Courts are naturally suspicious when employers trot out subjective discharge reasons like “not a team player” or “fails to inspire subordinates,” which may mask an underlying discriminatory attitude. One way to add credibility to subjective evaluation criteria is to ask co-workers and subordinates for their confidential assessments …

Denied training opportunity isn’t necessarily discrimination

03/01/2008
It’s not discrimination for an employer to offer training to some employees but not others—if the training doesn’t lead to greater pay, advancement opportunities or other tangible benefits. Simply put, employers don’t have to worry about discrimination lawsuits if their decisions are based on solid business reasons …

Non-Minorities can’t sue on basis of minority discrimination

03/01/2008

Good—and somewhat obvious—news: Job applicants who are not members of a protected class can’t sue for discrimination on the basis that an employer’s hiring practices discriminate against minorities …