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Discrimination / Harassment

Minor annoyances at work don’t add up to retaliation

01/01/2007

Last summer, the U.S. Supreme Court drafted a broad new legal standard for judging whether a company retaliated against an employee for complaining about discrimination. Now, the lower courts are starting to define what that standard means …

Consensus Decisions Can Deflect Firing-Bias Claims

01/01/2007

One of the best ways to make sure a termination decision sticks is to adopt a consensus approach to the decision-making …

Employee’s ‘Audio Diary’ Spawns Lawsuit Against Pittsburgh TV Station

01/01/2007

CBS News sued a former administrative assistant at its KDKA-TV station in Pittsburgh for unlawfully recording phone calls, reading confidential e-mail and gathering private salary information. The company wants her to give the information back, including an “audio diary” she kept of phone calls for six months …

Zero tolerance policy means zip, says York County employee

01/01/2007

York County’s zero tolerance sexual harassment policy didn’t add up to much for a former supervisor at the York County Youth Development Center, who has filed a federal sexual harassment lawsuit against her boss …

Family and children: taboo subjects in PA job interviews

01/01/2007

Asking prospective employees whether they’re married or have children is not illegal in Pennsylvania, but it’s a very bad idea …

Alleged Anti-Woman Comment Sparks Bias Case at Pittsburgh Firm

01/01/2007

A female attorney specializing in employment and labor law has filed a sexual discrimination lawsuit against a Pittsburgh law firm, claiming the environment was hostile to women …

State police officer wins $340,000 judgment in retaliation lawsuit

01/01/2007

A Gibson state police corporal was awarded $340,000 by a federal jury in a lawsuit alleging the department retaliated against him for reporting wrongdoing by fellow officers …

New civil union law: How must employers respond?

01/01/2007

Now that New Jersey has become the third state to allow civil union among same-sex couples, employers need to rethink some of their HR policies and practices, particularly with employee benefits …

Use unemployment comp decision to defend a bias lawsuit

01/01/2007

Here’s another good reason to aggressively contest unemployment compensation claims when you have strong evidence that the company fired the employee for a good cause (such as lying or stealing): You can use an unemployment compensation ruling to prove, in a later discrimination lawsuit, that you fired an employee for a valid, nondiscriminatory reason …

Advocates push for equal rights for illegal alien workers in N.J.

01/01/2007

The ACLU, AFL-CIO and other groups have filed a petition accusing the United States, New Jersey and several other state governments of human rights violations by refusing to grant equal rights to illegal immigrant workers …