Discrimination and EEOC Compliance
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EEOC Accuses Security Firm of Sexual Harassment Against Male Workers
A two male employees from a North Carolina-based security firm allegedly made offensive comments to their male subordinates, solicited nude pictures from them, asked male employees to undress in front of them and solicited male employees for sex.
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Department of Labor Lists Considerations for Adult Child Care FMLA Leave Requests
The U.S. Department of Labor has issued an “administrator's interpretation” of factors an employer must consider when an employee requests leave to care for an adult child under the Family and Medical Leave Act.
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EEOC Settles Seventh Day Adventist Religious Discrimination Suit
Experts say religious discrimination claims in the workplace are expected to be a growing problem for employers.
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Dillard's to Pay $2 Million to Settle Class Action Disability Bias Lawsuit
The settlement resolves a 2008 lawsuit filed against the Little Rock, Arkansas-based retailer for allegedly using a longstanding national policy and practice of requiring all employees to disclose personal and confidential medical information to obtain sick leave, the EEOC said in a statement Dec.
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Compensable Working Time: The De Minimis Doctrine and ‘Rounding’ Time
There are several traps an employer can fall into with regard to accurately recording the time that an employee actually works.
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Court Reverses Ruling, Says UPS Worker Entitled to Trial on ADA Claim
The complex case of Teresa Watts v. United Parcel Service Inc. has gone to trial three times and been appealed to the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati once before, according to the 6th Circuit's latest ruling.
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White Men Can’t Jump to Conclusions on Minority Issues
Rockwell Automation discovers the key to diversity training.
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Civil Rights Commission to Hold Hearing on Impact of Criminal Background Checks on Minorities
Three panels are scheduled at the 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. hearing, which is open to the public. They will feature speakers from government officials and scholars; business and advocacy groups and trade associations.
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Big Lots Settles Sexual Harassment Lawsuit with EEOC for $155,000
The settlement resolves a 2011 lawsuit filed against a Big Lots store in Fort Smith, Arkansas, for allegedly violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 after a store manager sexually harassed a class of female employees.
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IHOP Franchisee Settles EEOC Sex Discrimination Lawsuit for $1 Million
After complaints were made about Lee Broadnax's behavior, IHOP failed to take reasonable measures to prevent and promptly correct sexual harassment allegations, according to court documents.
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Gender Discrimination Class Expanded in Lawsuit Against Forest Pharmaceuticals
The four original plaintiffs were all Pennsylvania residents. The newly named plaintiffs are in California, Illinois, Kentucky and Pennsylvania. All are current or former Forest sales representatives.
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Emergency Room Physician is Independent Contractor, Cannot Pursue Bias Claims: Court
Glascock charged that throughout her relationship with the group she was subjected to ongoing sexual harassment by other group physicians, including being called a “princess,” “cutie” and “babe,” as well as disparaging remarks about pregnancy.
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Ministerial Exception Applied to Music Director with No Religious Training
According to the ruling, Philip Cannata, who became music director at St. John Neumann Catholic Church in Austin, Texas, in 1998, had no liturgical responsibilities because he “lacked the requisite education, training and experience.”
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Lawsuit says NBA Tried to Force Out Working Mothers with Young Children
The lawsuit said the plaintiff, Secaucus, New Jersey-based Brynn Cohn, and two others in the print group were forced to resign because of the additional child care expenses the schedule would have required.
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EEOC Settles with Mining Firm Over ADA Violations
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said Rocky Davis, who has profound hearing loss, had asked Birmingham, Alabama-based Jim Walter Resources, a unit of Walter Energy Inc., to accommodate him and assign him to another location, but the firm failed to honor his request.
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U.S. Court Abused Discretion in Sex Harassment Case: Appeals court
the EEOC asked the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York in Albany to issue a broad injunction against KarenKim that included barring Allen Manwaring from entering the store.
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Fast-Food Franchisee Settles ADA Charges Brought by EEOC
In the suit filed in April against Waco, Texas-based CTW L.L.C.
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Gender Bias Class-Action Lawsuit Filed Against Wal-Mart in the Southeast
Zenovdia Love, the lead plaintiff, had worked for Wal-Mart for 15 years until 2003. She was passed over for promotion to an unposted co-manager position by a male from outside Wal-Mart who had less experience than her and then was required to train him, the lawsuit said.
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EEOC Sues Texas Restaurant Chain for Pregnancy Discrimination
Maryann Castillo, who worked at Bayou City Wings from 2008 to May 2011 as a server, bartender and manager, was laid off allegedly due to her pregnancy, according to the lawsuit.
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Turkey Processing Company Must Pay $1.3 Million to Disabled Workers for 'Severely Substandard' Wages
On Sept. 18, Judge Charles R. Wolfe of federal district court for the southern district of Iowa in Davenport ordered Hill Country to pay $1.
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California Hospital to Pay $975,000 to Settle Racial Harassment, Discrimination Case
The EEOC said the hospital's English-only language policy was used to harass and discriminate against Filipino employees in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
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National Origin, Religious Harassment Alleged in EEOC Suit Against UPS
Since 2004, Talal Alfaour, a loader at UPS in San Francisco, allegedly had faced verbal and physical harassment, often referred to by supervisors and co-workers as “Dr. Bomb,” “al-Qaida” and “Taliban,” the EEOC said in a statement.
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How to Avoid Ethics Scandals
The only way to create an ethical workplace is by rewarding the right behavior—even if it means losing business.
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Kentucky Staffing Firm Settles EEOC Suit
University of Kentucky student Megan Woodard is a member of a fundamentalist Baptist church whose members believe women should not dress like men, including refraining from wearing pants, according to the EEOC.
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EEOC Files Charges Against Burger King in Workplace Attire Dispute
Ashanti McShan was assured she could wear a skirt to work, but when she arrived at work for orientation, store management told her she could not do so, and she was told to leave the store. McShan is a Pentecostal Christian, a denomination that requires women to wear only skirts or dresses.
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'Great Texas Lactation Case' Debates Whether Breast-Milk Pumping Is a Pregnancy-Related Condition
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is acting for a Texas mother who was fired days after she asked her employer about a room to pump breast milk. A judge ruled that after the woman gave birth the former employee 'was no longer pregnant and her pregnancy-related conditions ended.'
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Jury Award of $3.5M Reinstated in Chrysler Discrimination Case
According to the ruling by the 7th U.S Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago in Otto May Jr. v. Chrysler Group L.L.C., the Cuban-born May was the target of racist, xenophobic, homophobic and anti-Semitic graffiti that appeared in and around the company's paint department between 2002 and 2005.
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Wal-Mart Settles Employee's EEOC Disability Discrimination Lawsuit for $50,000
The EEOC said Wal-Mart fired Marcia Arney, a part-time clerk, from her position in its Carlsbad, New Mexico, store rather than trying to return her to her job after a medical leave related to her cerebral palsy.
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Racism Lawsuit Targets Mercedes-Benz Store
A lawsuit filed in federal court in New York charges that Burnell Guyton, 54, and Andre Grammer, 44, both black, found racist graffiti on several occasions in a bathroom stall used by employees.
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Muslim Woman Charges Disney with Religious Discrimination
Compromises she offered, including wearing a hijab in colors matching her uniform and bearing a Disney logo, were rejected by the company, while Boudlal rejected Disney's suggestion she work elsewhere in its complex away from public view, according to the lawsuit.
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Ministerial Exception' Exempts Religious Employers
Federal, state and local employment discrimination laws may not apply to religious institutions and their employees who play some role in disseminating the employer's religious message.
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Trucking Company Settles EEOC Racial Discrimination Lawsuit for $120,000
A defunct trucking company hired 38 white dock workers at its Newton, North Carolina facility in April 2011, purposefully overlooking six equally qualified African-American applicants for the positions on the basis of their race.
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Court Dismisses Discrimination Suit Filed by Christian School Teacher
The federal district court ruling said the court had stayed briefing on St. Peter's motion to dismiss the case pending the Supreme Court's decision.
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Hotel Groups to Settle EEOC Harassment Suit
The EEOC said female employees were subjected to the constant use of racial slurs and derogatory sex-based and racial comments.
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Racial Discrimination Lawsuit Against Humana Reinstated
Kathryn Keys' employment was terminated by Humana Inc. in June 2008, citing a 2006 negative performance assessment and ignoring a 2007 favorable performance appraisal, according to the ruling.
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Supreme Court to Clarify What Constitutes a Supervisor in Harassment Cases
The court accepted the case June 25 and has ruled on the issue previously under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
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DOJ Sues Staffing Agency for Violating Immigration and Nationality Act
The complaint seeks a court order prohibiting future discrimination by the respondent, monetary damages to the employee and civil penalties.
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Home Depot Reaches Settlement in Firing of National Guardsman
The Justice Department has reached a $45,000 settlement with Home Depot Inc. to resolve charges it violated federal law when it terminated an Army National Guard soldier's employment.
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Pregnancy Discrimination Act Violated When School Fires Teacher for Premarital Pregnancy
According to the May 16 ruling in Jarretta P. Hamilton vs. Southland Christian School Inc., Hamilton, who began teaching at the St. Cloud, Florida-based school in January 2008, conceived a child with her then-fiancé in January 2009. The couple got married the next month.
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EEOC to Publish Discrimination Charge Statistics Online
The U.S. Equal Employment Commission said May 14 it is making its private sector workplace discrimination charge statistics for each of the 50 states and U.S. territories available online for fiscal years 2009-2011.
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A Look Back at Nicholas Katzenbach's Recent Interview With Workforce Management
In what might have been his last interview, Nicholas Katzenbach, who died May 8, 2012, spoke to Workforce Management contributor Matthew Heller on the phone about his thoughts on the Civil Rights Act and the difficulty both the Kennedy and Johnson administrations had in getting it through Congress.
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Randstad to Pay $60,000 in EEOC Suit
The settlement also requires the international staffing firm to modify its anti-discrimination policy and amend its nationwide employment law compliance training
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Court: Three Unwanted Touches in Five Months Constitute Sex Harassment
One attorney familiar with the case says the case illustrates that employers need to conduct an investigation 'in any situation that involves intimate touching.'
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'Hotness Discrimination' Isn't a Superficial Problem for Employers
Such discrimination claims may seem frivolous but legal experts say employers should take them as seriously as they would any harassment complaint.
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Wal-Mart to Pay $4.8M in Back Wages for Fair Labor Standards Act Violations
The Labor Department said under terms of the settlement, Wal-Mart has agreed to pay all back wages the department determined are owed for violations in addition to paying liquidated damages to the employees and a penalty to the department.
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EEOC Updates Guidance on Use of Arrest, Conviction Records in Employment Decisions
The Society for Human Resource Management said in a statement it 'is pleased that the guidance does not appear to impose a one-size-fits-all set of rules on employers and seems to take into consideration that every employer will have different needs and concerns in the use of criminal background...
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Wisconsin Law Repeals Punitive, Compensatory Damages in Bias Cases
The bill, which was supported by numerous business groups, was signed into law by the governor April 5, but not announced until April 6.
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Coca-Cola Unit Sued for Alleged Racial Discrimination
The lawsuit charges that the 16 plaintiffs 'have suffered from the worst of its ills in terms of biased work assignments and allotment of hours, unfair discipline and retaliation, and a caustic work environment.'
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New York City Ordered to Pay $128M to Minority Firefighter Applicants
The lawsuit originally was filed in 2007. In July 2009, Judge Garaufis ruled that the New York City Fire Department's reliance on two written exams constituted employment discrimination against minorities in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
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Wal-Mart Asks for Texas Gender Bias Suit to Be Thrown Out
Last June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against a proposed class of some 1.5 million members nationwide in Betty Dukes et al. vs. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., deciding that the class of plaintiffs did not have enough in common to pursue the lawsuit.
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Staffing Firm to Pay $148,000 in Pregnancy Suit
The lawsuit alleged HCS owner Charles Sisson discriminated against Roxy Leger, the company's bookkeeper, when he made offensive comments about her pregnancy and fired her because she needed to take maternity leave following the birth of her son, according to the EEOC.
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EEOC Approves Strategic Plan Through 2016
The agency 'is taking a significant step toward realizing the commission's vision of ending employment discrimination and promoting equal opportunity' in the workplace, EEOC Chair Jacqueline A. Berrien said in the statement.
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Employer Guidance Urged for Pregnancy Discrimination Act
Testimony during the hearing showcased an employer's confusion over some of the act's rules.
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Lactation Discrimination Is not Sex Discrimination: Judge
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 amends Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to say discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions constitutes unlawful sex discrimination under Title VII, according to the EEOC.
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EEOC Files Sex Bias Suit Against Mavis Discount Tire
Filed Jan. 31 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the suit accuses Mavis Discount Tire and its allied companies of violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.
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EEOC Issues Final Rule on Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act Records
GINA, which was signed into law by President George W. Bush in May 2008, protects job applicants, current and former employees, labor union members and apprentices and trainees from discrimination based on their genetic information.
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EEOC Actions, Enforcement Trends Focus of Report on Agency
The report noted that the agency identified combating systemic discrimination as a top priority in a 2006 task force report.
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Retaliation Charges Top EEOC Fiscal 2011 Filings
Sex discrimination charges, which were the second-most frequently filed charge, decreased 1.7 percent in fiscal 2011.
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Pregnant Worker Protected by FMLA Despite Timing of Leave Request: Court
Although the woman had previously been considered a 'top employee,' after learning of her pregnancy 'Brookdale began harassing her, causing stress and other complications in her pregnancy.'
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Pepsi Settles EEOC Charges of Racial Bias in Screenings for $3M
Under Pepsi's former policy, job applicants who had been arrested pending prosecution were not hired for a permanent job even if they had never been convicted of any offense.
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Analysis: Employment Class Actions Continue to Raise Firms' Financial Exposures
As a result of two key rulings, class actions are 'not dead or blocked, rather they're reforming and morphing into different iterations,' says one expert.
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EEOC Sues Wal-Mart for Disability Discrimination
Despite a 10-year-old settlement involving disability discrimination with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the agency has filed another lawsuit charging Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
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Blockbuster Settles Sex Harassment, Retaliation Suit for $2 Million
The alleged incidents took place in 2004 and 2005, according to the EEOC. They involved seven female temporary employees, four of whom are Hispanic.
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Hertz Sued by Fired Muslim Drivers Alleging Religious Bias, Retaliation
Most drove shuttle rental cars for cleaning and refueling during the work day at Seattle's Sea-Tac Airport, while the remainder drove the vans that carried workers to and from the car transport locations.
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Best Practices for Conducting Criminal Background Checks
From the National Employment Law Project's guide Criminal Background Checks: A Best Practices Guide for Employers:
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U.S. Agency Accuses Cargill of Discrimination, Seeks to Halt $60M in Contracts
The OFCCP said it has been unable to secure a fair resolution from Cargill to pay back wages and interest to the rejected job applicants and to extend job offers to at least 167of the affected workers.
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Suit Claims Worker was Fired for Refusing to Wear '666' Sticker
In March 2010, as a company's accidnt-free tally approached the number 666—identified in the 'Revelations' book of the Bible as 'the number of the beast' and a representation of Satan—the employee informed his supervisors that his religious beliefs wouldn't allow him to wear that number.
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EEOC to Hold Public Meeting on Guidance for Age Discrimination in Employment Act
According to background information issued by the EEOC last year, the proposed rule emphasizes the need 'for an individualized, case-by-case approach to determining whether an employment practice is based on reasonable factors other than age.'
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California-Only Class Refiles Sex Discrimination Suit Against Wal-Mart
The U.S. Supreme Court had ruled against a proposed class of some 1.5 million members nationwide in June. The majority ruled that the 'respondents have not identified a common mode of exercising discretion that pervades the entire company.'
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EEOC Sues Albuquerque Dealership for Sexual Harassment
The suit alleges that managers retaliated against men who reported incidents to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
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HIV-Positive Teacher Alleges Disability, Race Discrimination
The lawsuit alleges that teachers who are not of African-American descent and have been habitually late have not been subject to adverse job actions.
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Video Interviewing Cuts Costs, but Bias Worries Linger
One recruiter says that since incorporating online interviews she has cut spending from about $10,000 per search to roughly $500. Yet an employment lawyer advises clients to proceed with caution when using it.
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EEOC Sues Fashion Boutique Delia's for Pregnancy Discrimination
The suspected harassment included constant questioning about some employees' ability to perform their jobs because they were pregnant, recommending they take leaves of absence or forcing them to take maternity leave early.
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EEOC: Bass Pro Discriminates Against Blacks, Hispanics in Hiring
The suit against the 60-store sporting goods retailer also says managers at locations including the Houston area and Louisiana ‘made overtly racially derogatory remarks acknowledging the discriminatory practices including that hiring black candidates did not fit the corporate profile,' said...
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Tyson Foods Unit to Pay $2.25 Million to Settle Sex Discrimination Allegations
Under terms of the consent decrees, the $2.25 million settlement will be divided among the rejected female job applicants.
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Wal-Mart Class Action Decision Sets Precedent, Cited in Costco Ruling
An attorney notes that the Wal-Mart decision earlier this year will make it difficult for nationwide class actions in employment law to succeed.
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Former Financial Adviser Says He Was Fired for Running Gun Ad
A onetime Barron's hotshot adviser files a lawsuit against LPL Financial; Robert Ray Bennie Jr. of Lincoln, Nebraska, also is suing local regulators, including the new North American Securities Administrators Association president.
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Jobs Act Would Prohibit Discrimination Based on Unemployment Status
One expert says he sees little chance of the proposal's passage by Congress.
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Groupon Sued Over Unpaid Overtime
The suit says the Chicago-based daily-deal company didn't pay sales employees overtime, violating wage laws, or didn't pay them enough.
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Buffalo Not-for-Profit Violated Workers Rights in Facebook-Related Firings
A judge rules that the employees’ Facebook discussion was protected concerted activity within the meaning of Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act.
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Judge Dismisses Reporter's Discrimination, Retaliation Case Against Fox News
The EEOC had charged New York City-based Fox News with violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title I of the Civil Rights Act of 1991, the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 with respect to its treatment of reporter and former anchor Catherine...
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Court Rules Against Wal-Mart in Sexual Harassment, Retaliation Case
Jorge Pérez-Cordero filed a lawsuit in October 2001, alleging sexual-based discrimination and retaliation in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Puerto Rico law.
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Judge Dismisses Pregnancy Bias Suit Against Bloomberg, Criticizes EEOC
Reacting to the ruling, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said in a statement, ‘We regret today's decision, and look forward to proceeding with the individual claims and will assess our options.’
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Black Women Lost More Jobs During Recovery
Black women have lost more jobs than black men since the recession began in December 2007, says a recent report by the National Women’s Law Center.
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Pro-Union Employee Trying to Organize Target Store Is Fired
About seven weeks after failing to persuade her colleagues to join a union, a Target worker is terminated from her $8-an-hour job. The union will seek to reverse her dismissal.
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Ruling Discrimination Law Applies Individually Within Protected Classes
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ‘would have little force if an employer could defeat a claim of discrimination by treating a single member of the protected class in accordance with the law,’ said the unanimous ruling.
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OSHA to Strengthen Whistle-Blower Protections, Review Program
A provision in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act that gives financial incentives to corporate whistle-blowers could result in headaches for corporate directors and officers.
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Firefighters Reverse Discrimination Lawsuit Finally Settled
Of the 17 plaintiffs in the case—Frank Ricci et al. v. John DeStefano et al.—16 were Caucasian and one was Hispanic.
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Ex-Wells Fargo Adviser Claims She was Fired for Whistle-Blowing
The complaint states that the human resources department refused to take action to stop the retaliation and the compliance department told her that the Securities and Exchange Commission wouldn’t be interested in the insider trading allegations because ‘no one made a lot of money.’
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Software to Follow Rules and Boost Results
In an era of stepped-up government enforcement, companies have no choice but to tackle compliance head-on. And they are tapping software tools to help them stay on the right side of the law as well as boost the bottom line.
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Court Says Injured Wal-Mart Worker Can Pursue Retaliation Claim
After the fall, Cox returned to work in May 2007 and Wal-Mart afforded her several accommodations, court records state. But she alleges that Wal-Mart disciplined and fired her after she invoked her rights under Oregon’s workers’ compensation law.
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Verizon Settles $20 Million Disability Discrimination Lawsuit
The case is the largest disability discrimination settlement in a single lawsuit in Equal Employment Opportunity Commission history, according to the federal agency.
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Wal-Mart Ruling Convolutes Class-Action Landscape
In a 5-4 ruling in the case of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. v. Betty Dukes, et al., the high court reversed a lower court decision that would have allowed as many as 1.
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New EEOC Guidelines Shift Legal Rules for Disability Discrimination
The new regulations on implementing the ADAAA include several changes that HR professionals should keep in mind when dealing with disability issues.
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EEOC Issues Final Regulations for ADA Amendments Act
Employers need to understand and abide by these major changes set forth in the EEOC’s final regulations.
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Mission Impossible Sustaining Employer-Sponsored Group Health Insurance
Currently employees have no incentive to control their health care costs; they don’t know what the costs are. And because someone else is paying for most of their coverage, they probably don’t care.
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Practical Effects of 'Cat's Paw' Ruling in USERRA Case Still Unclear for Employers
The Supreme Court said the ‘singular influence’ test was too restrictive in light of USERRA, which states that an employer may be held liable for discrimination if a person’s membership in the military is a ‘motivating factor’ in the employer’s action.
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NLRB Sues Not-for-Profit in Firing of Workers for Facebook Posts
This isn’t the first time the National Labor Relations Board has weighed in on the discharge of an employee over the use of the popular social media website.
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EEOC Sues Starbucks for Firing Dwarf From Barista Job
The agency said May 16 that it filed a lawsuit after it failed to reach a voluntary pre-litigation settlement with the Seattle-based coffee company.
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Black Firefighter Applicants Win Ruling in Chicago
Many organizations are turning to employment-related tests, in part to establish hiring procedures that are objective and therefore legally defensible. But, as the Chicago case shows, tests can land employers in hot water, as well.
