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Harassment Employer Liability Issues

McGlinchey Stafford

Are Employers Liable in Tort for Employees’ Sexual Assaults?

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Should employers be liable in tort for their employees’ sexual assaults? Until recently, the universal answer was a resounding “no.” After all, an employer is only liable for their employees’ actions when the employee is...more

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

When is an employer liable for harassment by customers? You may be relieved.

When is an employer legally responsible for harassment of its employee by one of its customers? A recent court decision may be a relief for employers in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee. Most courts ruling on the...more

Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL

No Intent, No Liability: Sixth Circuit Narrows Employer Liability for Third-Party Harassment

Most employers understand their obligation to prevent discrimination and harassment at work, and the significant consequences that can come if such treatment is allowed to occur. But what if an employee alleges harassment not...more

Littler

Sixth Circuit Limits Employer Liability for Harassment by Nonemployees

Littler on

On August 8, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled an employer is not liable for harassment of an employee by a third party unless the employer intended for the harassment to occur. This stark departure...more

Dickinson Wright

Sixth Circuit Raises Bar for Employer Liability for Customer Harassment of Employees

Dickinson Wright on

In Bivens v. ZEP, Inc., the Sixth Circuit held that an employer is not liable under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended (Title VII), for harassment by a customer unless the employer intended the harassment...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Did the Employer Intend for the Customer to Harass Its Employee? The Sixth Circuit Sets a High Bar

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently held that an employer will be liable for a customer’s harassment of an employee only when it intends for such harassment to occur. ...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Sixth Circuit Takes Restricted View of Employer Liability for Third-Party Harassment

For years, both the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and multiple federal appellate circuits have agreed on the legal standard for proving liability for sexual or other harassment by a third party such as a vendor or...more

Benesch

Sixth Circuit Raises Standard for Employer Liability in Customer Harassment Cases

Benesch on

When is an employer liable for the harassment of an employee by a non-employee? The Sixth Circuit answered this question on Friday in Bivens v. Zep, Inc., holding that Title VII imposes liability for customer (or other...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Employers Should Avoid Promises to Employees About Off-Premises Security

How should employers react to employee complaints of harassment or threats of physical violence from a former coworker? Once the company has terminated the coworker, concerns about retaliation against an employee by the fired...more

Husch Blackwell LLP

Employment Law Lessons from a Coldplay® Concert: When Viral Moments Put Workplace Conduct in the Spotlight

Husch Blackwell LLP on

It was supposed to be a night of entertainment for concertgoers at a recent Coldplay performance. But for two company executives, the spotlight shone a bit too brightly when a “kiss cam” moment on the jumbotron captured what...more

Steptoe & Johnson PLLC

Evaluating the Employee Evaluation Process: There’s No Time Like the Present!

Steptoe & Johnson PLLC on

Now is a good time to re-evaluate your company’s employee evaluation process in light of the prevalence of remote work and a U.S. Supreme Court decision lowering the requirements for employees to succeed on certain...more

Kohrman Jackson & Krantz LLP

The Coldplay Concert Kiss Cam Scandal: Legal and Employment Litigation Implications

We’ve all heard about and been astonished (or entertained) by the recent Coldplay concert kiss cam scandal involving the CEO and Chief People Officer of Astronomer, a data infrastructure and workflow company valued at over $1...more

Husch Blackwell LLP

Proselytizing Online, Fired in Real Life: Are Anti-LGBTQ+ Views Protected by Title VII?

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Earlier this month, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement, commenced litigation against Rock Snowpark on July 2, 2025, for allegedly retaliating...more

Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP

Risques à surveiller en matière de congédiement déguisé

Les risques d’allégations de congédiement déguisé demeurent une préoccupation importante pour les employeurs canadiens, en particulier dans le contexte de changements opérationnels. Les tribunaux considèrent qu’un...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Georgia High Court Will Not Review Ruling Stripping Immunity From K-12 School Leaders

A Georgia Court of Appeals decision will now stand after the Georgia Supreme Court declined on Tuesday, July 1, to review the case. The ruling has serious implications for the doctrine of official immunity for K-12 employees...more

Ius Laboris

Cyprus Expands Workplace Harassment Protections

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In spring this year, a new law took effect in Cyprus expanding the definition of harassment and introducing stronger protections for workers. We take a look at the new framework and the key pointers for employers....more

Hogan Lovells

Employment in the news | May 2025

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In a busy month in the courts and tribunals, an employer was liable for psychiatric injury caused by a flawed disciplinary process. The High Court found that TUPE didn’t transfer an employer’s vicarious liability for an...more

K&L Gates LLP

Harassment in the Workplace: A Major Challenge for Employers in France

K&L Gates LLP on

During the first quarter of 2025, the French Supreme Court has rendered a number of rulings on harassment in the workplace. Whether moral, institutional, environmental or sexual, harassment is a burning topic and the French...more

Miller Nash LLP

Trials by Social Media and How Employers Can Respond

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Social media has been extensively used, and abused, since its inception. For all the beneficial and valid uses of social media, there is a seemingly equal number of improper, illegal, and even criminal uses. Employers have...more

Lathrop GPM

Federal Agencies Issue Guidance Identifying DEI Policies and Practices That May Be Unlawful

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Last month, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) issued guidance that aims to educate the public about conduct and programs related to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI)...more

Ius Laboris

France Introduces a New Concept of ‘Institutional Psychological Harassment’

Ius Laboris on

The French Court of Cassation has introduced and defined a new concept of ‘institutional psychological harassment’ in what appears to be the conclusion of the so-called ‘France Télécom case’. The case, which commenced back in...more

FordHarrison

EntertainHR: Modern Family, Modern Workforce: How Managers and Employees Interact

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Over the past few months, I dove headfirst into another show that had a long, successful run that I completely missed: Modern Family. Modern Family is a comedy about a large extended family living in Los Angeles, California....more

Troutman Pepper Locke

Workplace Investigations – One Size Does Not Fit All

Troutman Pepper Locke on

Over the last few years, employers have faced new and expanded obligations under state and federal employment laws relating to prohibition of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation in the workplace. These changes stem...more

Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL

EEOC & DOJ New Guidance on DEI-Related Discrimination: What Does it Mean for Employers?

On March 19, 2025, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Department of Justice issued guidance addressing unlawful discrimination related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (“DEI”) in the workplace. Although DEI is...more

Dentons

Communication is Everything – What HR Managers Need to Know

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As a manager or even a co-employee, how you interact with others is a critical component of your job. Many employment lawsuits are built on a failure to communicate as well as fundamental communication errors. Many HR...more

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