Addressing an unsettled evolving area of law, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan ruled, on August 18th , that a Michigan funeral home did not violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by requiring a transgender male employee to wear a man’s suit to work. EEOC v. R.G.
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Dismissal of Claims of Unlawful Discharge for Using FMLA Leave Highlight Importance of Accurate Record Keeping And Consistent Explanations For Employee Terminations
Too often weak claims of employment discrimination gain strength when employers fail to properly document and support with documentation the legitimate, non-discriminatory reasons for an employee’s termination. While the burden of proof never leaves the claimant, and there is no explicit legal obligation to document the basis for personnel decisions, jurors may develop a negative…
NLRB Includes Search-For-Work and Interim Employment Expenses as Direct Part of Make Whole Remedy Awards
Under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), the remedies available to a successful claimant have been limited to “make whole relief.” Like Title VII before the Civil rights Act of 1991, relief under the NLRA typically was limited to lost wages, benefits, other economic losses, and reinstatement. The underlying policy behind such “make whole relief”…
Muslim Employee Has a Triable Discrimination Claim Arising From a Five-Day Suspension for Using the Gym During Work Hours
The U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut ruled that a Muslim employee raised a triable national origin and religion discrimination claim against his employer arising out of his five-day suspension for using the gym during work hours. Ucar v. Conn. Dep’t of Transp., (D. Conn., No. 14-CV-765, 8/11/16). The situation arose when,…
Fifth Circuit: Evidence That Not All Employees Received or Were Trained on Employer’s Harassment Policy Sufficient to Create Fact Issue on Faragher/Ellerth Defense
In light of evidence that not all employees were given training or information about the employer’s sexual harassment policy, the Fifth Circuit recently reversed the grant of summary judgment in favor of an employer. The court ruled that the evidence was sufficient to create a fact issue as to whether the employer took reasonable steps…
EEOC PUBLISHES UPDATED EEO-1 REPORTING PROVISIONS
EEOC has released updates to its proposed EEO-1 reporting provisions. The updates were published July 14, 2016 in the Federal Register and the public with have 30 days to submit comments. The updates consider and respond to many of the comments that were submitted in response to the Agency’s original proposal which was published earlier this…
Sleeping On The Job Due To Prescription Medication Not A Sufficient Basis to Dismiss Disability Discrimination Complaint
In Beaton v. Metropolitan Transportation Authority New York City Transit, Docket No. 15 CV 08056 (S.D.N.Y. June 15, 2016), the Court denied Defendant’s motion to dismiss Plaintiff’s disability discrimination claims under the ADA and local laws. The case is significant because it addressed an alleged mental disability. By way of background, Plaintiff was employed by…
Inconsistent Policy Application By Employer Allows Age Discrimination Claim To Survive Summary Judgment
In Jones v. Pate Rehab. Endeavors, Inc., Docket No. 14-CV-2218 (N.D. Tx. June 17, 2016), the Court denied Defendant’s motion for summary judgment dismissing Plaintiff’s age discrimination claim under the ADEA. By way of background, Defendant employed Plaintiff as a Patient Transporter, which required him to transport patients in a motor vehicle. During his employment,…
Employment Application That Included a “Health History” Form Violated the ADA and GINA
A federal court in Missouri has held that an employer’s employment application unlawfully required job applicants to fill out a three-page “Health History” before being considered for a job, in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act of 2008. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Grisham Farm Products, Inc., Case…
Assisting Student With Sexual Harassment Report Not Protected Under Title VII or First Amendment
The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit rejected a professor’s claims that a university violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”) and the First Amendment to the United States Constitution when it allegedly denied tenure because she reported sexual harassment to the university on behalf of a…