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Discrimination / Harassment

Team-Building Events: Fun is good; employee humiliation is bad

06/01/2006

It’s summertime, and corporate thoughts turn to company picnics and outdoor morale-boosting efforts. One word of caution: If your team-building exercises go beyond three-legged sack races and into the realm of reality TV, you could be headed for a lawsuit …

Don’t editorialize about merits of employee complaints

06/01/2006

Process every employee complaint without commenting on its merits or on the potential consequences of making the complaint. Remind managers to do the same. Never make snide comments …

All day Sunday off may be a reasonable accommodation

06/01/2006

If you require employees to work Fridays, Saturdays or Sundays, be aware that some employees may object on religious grounds. If they do, you’re required by Title VII to make reasonable ccommodations for sincerely held religious beliefs. And, surprisingly, that right may extend to the entire day off, not just long enough to attend religious services …

What’s the cost of a few racist managers? $2 million

06/01/2006

In a recent EEOC race discrimination settlement, Cracker Barrel agreed to pay more than $2 million to 51 current and former employees because of supervisors’ actions at three of its Illinois restaurants …

Are Employee Protests a ‘Protected’ Activity?

06/01/2006

Recent immigration-related rallies have led many employees, mostly minority ones, to skip work on those days. That action sparked an important question in HR circles: How should employers react to unexcused absences caused by employees’ attending political protests? …

EEOC sends message with new guidelines on race, color bias

06/01/2006

The EEOC recently sent a powerful signal about its enforcement priorities when it published newly revised employer guidance on workplace race and color discrimination. The message: Employee complaints of race bias or color bias will be pushed to the top of the EEOC’s inbox …

Capping Salaries Won’t Violate Age-Bias Law

06/01/2006

Q. I have a question about capping employees’ salaries when they reach the top of the pay scale. I’m concerned because the only employees affected are those with many years of service and who happen to be over age 40. Have we made a legal error? Some of the affected employees are angry and have mentioned discrimination based on the residual effect of the cap. —M.M., California

Explicit Sex Talk by the ‘Victim’ Can Be Used as Harassment Defense

05/01/2006

If an employee claims she was sexually harassed but the evidence shows that she gave as good as she got, you have a good defense in hand. As a new ruling shows, employees’ sexual statements can be used against them when they sue for sexual harassment …

Jobs Need to be ‘Substantially Equal,’ Not Identical, to Demand Same Pay

05/01/2006

Some employers wrongly believe that they’re not vulnerable to a federal Equal Pay Act claim when the two jobs in question aren’t identical. But female employees don’t need to meet such a high standard to bring their equal-pay claim to court …

Harassment Investigations Must Be ‘Fundamentally Fair’ to the Accused

05/01/2006

When a sexual harassment accusation arises, employers often move into crisis mode. But don’t try to push the problem off your plate by quickly jettisoning the employee via a kangaroo court …