Perhaps the most frequently requested religious accommodation under Title VII involves scheduling to avoid working certain times of the week. Employers must consider allowing accommodations to allow employees time away from...more
Employers are not strictly liable for hostile environment sexual harassment by a victim’s co-workers. The employer may be held responsible under Title VII if it knew or should have known of the harassment and failed to take...more
On the heels of last week’s Second Circuit decision finding sexual orientation discrimination prohibited under Title VII, on Wednesday, a Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals panel held that Title VII likewise protects transgender...more
In a major decision, the full Second Circuit Court of Appeals became the second federal appellate circuit to conclude that Title VII’s prohibitions against sex discrimination also apply to discrimination and harassment claims...more
Through the 2000s, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (which includes North Carolina and South Carolina) had the reputation as one of the most employer-friendly U.S. appellate courts. As new judges took to the bench over the...more
Title VII requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for employees’ religious beliefs and practices. While this accommodation obligation may not be as high as that imposed for disabilities under the ADA, a recent...more
Under Title VII, employers are only liable for an employee’s – as opposed to a supervisor’s – sexual harassment of a co-worker if it knew or should have known of such conduct. Last month in an unpublished decision, the Second...more
From time to time, health care employers find themselves faced with employees who refuse to take mandatory vaccines intended to protect themselves and their patients from exposure to infectious diseases. Sometimes these...more
Employment laws and standards of conduct greatly vary from country to country. U.S. employees working overseas for their U.S. employer generally enjoy the same legal protections as if they were working at home. ...more
12/14/2017
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Title VII
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits race discrimination in employment, but it does not define what race means. Over the past decade, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has shifted its definition of...more
In a recent string of decisions, federal courts have concluded that use of racial epithets even on one occasion is sufficient to constitute a hostile work environment under Title VII. Thus, use of the N-word and other...more
Last week, Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a memorandum to U.S. Attorneys announcing that the Department of Justice has reversed its position on the coverage of transgender people as protected under Title VII of the...more
In most cases in order to demonstrate a hostile working environment due to sex, a plaintiff must show multiple incidents of harassment over a period of time. However, in some situations, allegations of harassment that occur...more
Not every action that an employee views as negative can serve as the basis for a claim of discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In order to state a claim for relief, federal courts have held that the...more
Under most employers’ anti-discrimination and harassment policies, an employee who makes overt racist comments toward a co-worker would likely face termination. In addition to the moral and ethical purposes behind such...more
On July 6, the full Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals declined to hear the appeal of a case dismissing a sexual orientation bias claim under Title VII for lack of jurisdiction. This decision creates a split among the federal...more
The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (which includes North Carolina and South Carolina) affirmed a $600,000 jury verdict in favor of a West Virginia coal miner who refused to use a new biometric hand scanner installed by his...more
On Tuesday, the full Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964’s prohibition against sex discrimination also includes protections against employees being discriminated against...more
Last week’s EmployNews reported an Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals decision in which two of the three judges considering the case concluded that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964’s prohibition against sex...more
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex. Perhaps the hottest issue in employment discrimination law today is whether that ban on gender discrimination includes discrimination on...more
Earlier this month, the Trump administration withdrew the Department of Justice’s prior position that Title IX of the Civil Rights Act prohibits schools and other covered institutions from discriminating on the basis of...more
Some people are naturally more affectionate than others. Most people have friends or acquaintances who go for hugs when a handshake is all that you expect. In the workplace, these personality types can clash, and “huggers”...more
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act requires employers to provide reasonable accommodation of employees’ religious practices. Perhaps the most common accommodation request involves time away from work based on religious...more
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act protects employees against sexual and other types of harassment that result in a hostile and offensive working environment. What happens when the alleged harassment involves customers of the...more
Despite the calling of a special legislative session for the purpose of repealing North Carolina’s HB2 legislations, the General Assembly recently rejected attempts to remove the 2016 law. The initial agreement among...more