On occasion, employers defending lawsuits filed by their employees raise questions over the legal validity of what most attorneys consider to be settled law. A good example comes from a recent decision by the U.S. Court of...more
When employers establish internal forums for employee comments, they may not anticipate that employees will use this as an opportunity to criticize the company and management. Employers also may not realize that such...more
For employers in North Carolina and South Carolina, perhaps the most important change in their exposure to legal claims from employees has resulted from the appointment of new judges to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals who...more
Successful women have long been the subject of rumors that promotions or other career advancements were the result of their “sleeping their way to the top.” Earlier this month, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (which...more
An African-American employee comes into work early one day, with plans to leave earlier than originally scheduled. When he is informed that his vehicle is being serviced and is not immediately available, he blows up at the...more
In recent months, EmployNews has reported on a series of federal appellate decisions dealing with administrative prerequisites for filing lawsuits claiming employment discrimination. Some courts have stated that an EEOC...more
Last Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to review a trio of cases that could have a major impact on employer practices and legal risks posed by employment discrimination claims. The cases involve the question of whether...more
4/29/2019
/ Altitude Express Inc v Zarda ,
Bostock v Clayton County Georgia ,
Civil Rights Act ,
EEOC v RG & GR Harris Funeral Homes ,
Employment Litigation ,
Gender Identity ,
LGBTQ ,
Obama Administration ,
SCOTUS ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Trump Administration
Formal employment contracts can be for a specific term or may be terminated by one or both parties under certain conditions. When the agreement has no set term or can be ended by either party at any time, it is considered...more
One of the most important developments in employment law over the past several years has been the expansion by some federal courts of Title VII’s sex discrimination prohibitions to encompass sexual orientation and gender...more
In a recent EmployNews article, we reported on a federal appellate circuit split over how courts should dispose of employment discrimination suits where the plaintiff fails to file an EEOC charge within the required statutory...more
2/26/2019
/ Appeals ,
Charging Party ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Litigation ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Jurisdiction ,
Public Employees ,
Remand ,
Retaliation ,
Reversal ,
Title VII
According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, employers may only require employees to submit to medical exams or inquiries when there is a business necessity for determining the employee’s ability to perform the essential...more
2/12/2019
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Appeals ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Dismissals ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Medical Examinations ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Reversal
Plaintiffs can bring employment discrimination claims under federal civil rights laws using one of two theories. Disparate treatment claims require the plaintiff to produce evidence of intent to discriminate due to a...more
In a highly publicized incident during the 2016 presidential election, a Trump campaign staff worker claimed that the North Carolina campaign director threatened him with a pistol on the way to a campaign event. The worker...more
1/18/2019
/ Appeals ,
Assault ,
Donald Trump ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Firearms ,
Independent Contractors ,
Negligence ,
Political Campaigns ,
Vicarious Liability ,
Workplace Violence
Job-protected leave continues to be the most common accommodation requested by employees under the Americans with Disabilities Act. For employers, the question remains at what point does the amount of work missed end the...more
When training interviewers on legal compliance in hiring, employers often coach their employees to avoid phrases that can be interpreted as referring to the applicant’s age. For example, the EEOC sometimes views claims that...more
In its 2012 Hosanna-Tabor decision, the U.S. Supreme Court recognized a “ministerial” exemption to federal civil rights laws. It allows religious employers – without being subjected to claims of discrimination – to make...more
In recent years, federal courts have increasingly been called upon to decide whether employers must provide accommodations relating to disabled employees’ commutes to and from work. The EEOC and some federal courts have...more
Several years ago, state attorneys general began investigating claims of antitrust violations based on franchise agreements that required franchisees not to hire employees of another franchisee. Despite the regular use of...more
Earlier this year, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission persuaded the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals that a funeral home’s termination of a transgender employee violated Title VII’s prohibition against sex...more
11/5/2018
/ Appeals ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Discrimination ,
Employment Litigation ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Gender Identity ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Transgender ,
Trump Administration
Many employers rely on the fluctuating workweek (FWW) method to reduce their overtime obligations. FWW allows employers to pay a fixed salary and a half-time overtime premium to employees whose working hours significantly...more
The Americans with Disabilities Act requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations that permit a disabled employee to perform the essential functions of his or her job. What happens, however, when an employer...more
As previously chronicled in EmployNews, a small but growing number of states that have legalized medical marijuana use have recognized employees’ rights not to be subject to adverse treatment by their employers due to such...more
10/19/2018
/ Disability Discrimination ,
Drug Testing ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Litigation ,
Employment Policies ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Job Applicants ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Preemption ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
State Labor Laws
Over the past decade federal courts have demonstrated a decreasing willingness to tolerate the use of racist language in the workplace. In repeated circumstances, courts have found even a single use of a racial slur...more
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects employees from workplace harassment. As most employers know, these protections apply not only to behavior by co-workers and supervisors but also to harassment by customers,...more
In addition to OSHA rules, many safety-sensitive businesses use ANSI or other standards organizations’ guidelines to develop their safety programs. Earlier this month, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed dismissal of...more