In February 2019, the New York City Commission on Human Rights amended the New York City Human Rights Law to ban discrimination against natural hairstyles as part of the Law’s prohibition against race or color discrimination. This past July, California created the CROWN Act (“Create a Respectful and Open Workplace for Natural Hair” (SB 188)) … Continue Reading
In addition to the laws expanding sexual harassment liability, the New York State Legislature also passed last week three laws that will bar employers from inquiring about applicants’ salary history, prohibit wage differentials based on protected class status, and ban race discrimination based on hairstyle. For a complete review, see our article by clicking here.… Continue Reading
Employers in New York State will soon be faced with greater potential liability for sexual harassment under legislation passed last week. The same law contains a variety of other changes governing workplace harassment. For a complete summary see our article by clicking here.… Continue Reading
Under the Washington State Law Against Discrimination (“WLAD”), the statute prohibits “places of public accommodation” discriminating against individuals on the basis of sex, race, national origin, and sexual orientation. RCW 49.60.215. “Places of public accommodation” is broadly defined and includes all facilities or businesses used by or open to the public. Sexual harassment is a … Continue Reading
New Jersey Governor Murphy signed Bill S-2986 into law on June 11, 2019 mandating that “larger” hotels protect workers from sexual violence, assault, and other acts of harassment and violence that can occur on hotel premises by co-workers and/or guests. A copy of the law can be seen by clicking here. The law notes that … Continue Reading
An employer’s failure to stop a false rumor that a female employee slept with her male boss in order to obtain a promotion can give rise to liability under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, according to a recent decision by the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Parker v. Reema Consulting … Continue Reading
In what could be the next wave of legislation, New Jersey has amended the State’s Law Against Discrimination to bar enforcement of non-disclosure provisions in settlement agreements and employment contracts. For a complete discussion of the new law, effective March 18, 2019, please click here.… Continue Reading
Just when landlords and their insurers thought that their obligations couldn’t get broader, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the federal Fair Housing Act’s anti-discrimination requirement extends to every part of the housing relationship, including discrimination by another tenant (not by the landlord) that occurs after the sale or rental transaction is completed. Francis … Continue Reading
A U.S. District Court has immediately restored the prior directives of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Office of Management and Budget requiring use of a revised EEO-1 form where employers with at least 100 employees have to report detailed information on their employees’ wages and hours, broken down by gender, race, and ethnicity. For … Continue Reading
Where an employee works outside the jurisdiction where the decision-maker is located, which location’s law applies? A recent decision by a New York federal court in Amaya v. Ballyshear LLC confirms that a key factor is the location of the impact of the alleged discriminatory conduct. In Amaya, plaintiff worked outside the City of New … Continue Reading
The Sixth Circuit recently held, in Doe v. Baum, that a public university violated the Due Process Clause and Title IX when it did not allow a student accused of sexual misconduct to conduct a cross-examination of the claimant during university-run proceedings. The Court ruled that since the public university had to “choose between competing … Continue Reading
California’s Governor vetoed a bill that would have imposed restrictions on the use of arbitration agreements for certain employment claims. For a complete summary, see our firm’s blog post by clicking here.… Continue Reading
Effective October 1, 2018, a new Maryland law will prohibit waivers related to an employee’s future sexual harassment claims and future retaliation claims for making a sexual harassment claim. For a more complete analysis, please click here.… Continue Reading
In Lester v. O’Rourke, the United States District Court for the North District of Illinois held that Plaintiff is entitled to trial on his Title VII retaliation claim after he signed a Last Chance Agreement (“LCA”) that settled pending Title VII claims and also waived claims that might be asserted if the employer disciplined or … Continue Reading
Effective June 7, 2018, employers defending claims brought under Washington’s Law Against Discrimination are constricted in their ability to obtain a plaintiff’s medical records, and are entitled to do so only if the plaintiff: (1) alleges a specific diagnosable physical or psychiatric injury as a proximate result of the defendant’s alleged conduct; (2) relies on … Continue Reading
Under the theory of “disparate impact,” even facially neutral policies can result in claims of discrimination when a “protected group” suffers a statistical disadvantage vis a vis another group (i.e., the rule of thumb is a twenty-percent disadvantage). For example, in Andreana v. Virginia Beach City of Public Schools, the United States District Court of … Continue Reading
If a proposed law is enacted by the New York City Council, employers would be prohibited from requiring employees to check and respond to email or other electronic communications during non-work hours. The bill allows for exceptions in “cases of emergency” and would require employers to publish a written policy governing work-related communications during non-work … Continue Reading
The United States Supreme Court declined to review a decision from the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals that held a two-to-three month leave of absence following the exhaustion of leave under the Family and Medical Leave was not a reasonable accommodation under the Americans With Disabilities Act. Severson v. Heartland Woodcraft, Inc. For more information on the … Continue Reading
In a divided en banc opinion, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that sexual orientation discrimination is covered by Title VII’s ban on gender discrimination. Deepening a Circuit split within the U.S. Courts of Appeals, the Second Circuit adopted the reasoning of the Seventh Circuit in Hively v. Ivy Tech Cmty. College of Ind., … Continue Reading
In an unusual reversal, the NLRB today vacated its 2017 decision in Hy-Brand Industrial Contractors, Ltd., that set a new standard for determining joint employer liability. The Board decision arose due to an inspector general report that faulted board member William Emanuel for improperly participating in the Hy-Brand case. For a more in depth discussion … Continue Reading
According to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s annual Performance and Accountability Report (PAR), the EEOC filed more than double the number of discrimination lawsuits against employers in FY 2017 than in F^2016. The Agency filed 184 lawsuits in FY 2017 as compared to only 86 in FY 2016. Thirty of these 184 cases involved … Continue Reading
Holiday parties aren’t the only thing your employees are buzzing about this time of year – ‘tis the season for year-end performance evaluations! Performance evaluations, when used properly, are a powerful tool for constructive feedback and support for favorable and adverse personnel actions. Below are the tips employers should keep in mind when completing performance … Continue Reading
The EPL industry rightfully has been concerned about the NLRB’s and courts’ expansion of liability from the seeming employer to those with relationships to that entity. Franchisors increasingly were exposed to liability for franchisees’ alleged misconduct and contractors were being served with lawsuits alleging discrimination by subcontractors or staffing agencies. This expansionist trend may be … Continue Reading
In Zuber v. Boscov’s, the Third Circuit narrowly interpreted a release agreement to permit the plaintiff to pursue a claim under the FMLA for interference and wrongful termination. The employer moved to dismiss on the basis that his claims were barred by a previously-entered Compromise and Release Agreement (“C&R”) settling his workers’ compensation claim. The C&R … Continue Reading
