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North Carolina

Can you pass the constructive discharge test? Beware lawsuits from employees who quit

10/26/2010
Some supervisors wrongly assume that employees who quit can’t sue because they weren’t fired. That’s not true. An employee who finds conditions so intolerable that he or she has no choice but to quit can sue and allege termination. Fortunately, courts expect employees to have relatively thick skins. Workplaces will never be perfect and courts don’t expect them to be.

Court: Employers can collect costs after win

10/26/2010
If an employer loses a discrimination case, it typically has to pay the employee’s legal fees and associated costs plus any damages due. But what if the employee loses the case? Judges have begun assessing legal costs to the losing side. Such costs typically include expenses associated with defending a lawsuit such as deposition fees, copying costs and expert witness expenses.

New employee a dud? Boss who hired should fire

10/26/2010

Someone who harbors animosity against a protected class isn’t likely to hire someone he knows belongs to that protected class. If a manager picks a black man as his preferred candidate for an opening and offers the job, he probably isn’t a racist. If that same manager finds out the new employee isn’t as qualified as he sounded or looked on his résumé, he should be the one to make the termination decision.

Will harassment suit burn Hillsborough pizzeria?

09/27/2010
The EEOC has filed suit against Vinny’s Italian Grill in Hillsborough, claiming it fired two women after they complained about a manager’s ongoing sexual harassment.

Would-be bartender pours Applebee’s a shot of trouble

09/24/2010
An Applebee’s restaurant in Fayetteville is facing an EEOC sex discrimination lawsuit after managers allegedly reneged on a promise to promote Amanda Antisdel to a bartending position and then hired a less experienced man instead.

Yates Construction settles race case with money–and more

09/24/2010

Stokesdale-based Yates Construction has agreed to pay two black employees $30,000 to settle racial discrimination, harassment and retaliation charges. Rodney McCants and a co-worker claimed they were subject to racial epithets and jokes in the workplace. When McCants complained about the ongoing harassment, Yates Construction fired him.

Don’t suggest delaying EEOC filing near deadline

09/24/2010
Here’s a tip that could save your organization from a protracted legal mess: When an employee says she’s considering filing an EEOC complaint and you know she doesn’t have much more time left, don’t do anything to dissuade her from filing.

Warn supervisors against any statements about race

09/24/2010

When a supervisor makes negative comments about an employee of a particular race or national origin, that can easily be interpreted as discrimination. And such statements can be enough to propel a lawsuit past the initial stages. Even if the case is later dismissed, a derogatory statement may cost tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees and lost time.

Boss’s past misbehavior doesn’t automatically make employer liable for future misdeeds

09/24/2010
Under North Carolina state law, employers can be held liable for wrongs committed by employees under some limited circumstances. But what if the employer simply knows the supervisor discriminated against a pregnant employee in the past? Does that mean that anytime a subordinate is pregnant, her employer can be liable because it should have known the supervisor would discriminate against another pregnant employee?

Worker quits in a huff and sues? Court: Employers need chance to fix problem

09/24/2010

Courts are starting to toss out lawsuits brought by employees who quit at the first sign of trouble without at least trying to work out a solution. Judges aren’t as willing as they were in the past to accept quitting as just another form of termination. Instead, they seem to be telling employees they need to give their employers a chance to fix problems before resorting to litigation.