This week, the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit became the first Federal Court of Appeals to hold that discrimination based on sexual orientation is actionable under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. A news article about…
Blog Archives
Seventh Circuit Recognizes Sexual Orientation as Protected Class
Tagged with: EEOC, human resources, sex discrimination
Posted in Discrimination, Federal Government, Labor & Employment
Posted in Discrimination, Federal Government, Labor & Employment
EEOC Loses Another Background Check Case
The EEOC has taken a lot of heat on its controversial stance of aggressively litigating adverse impact cases involving background checks. In April, 2012, the EEOC issued a new enforcement guidance seeking to curtail the uses of criminal background checks…
Can State Medical Marijuana Laws Trump Employer Rights?
Currently, 23 states and the District of Columbia have medical marijuana laws which allow a lawful level of marijuana use. One question which comes up often in such states is whether an employer can lawfully terminate an employee who fails…
Tagged with: Department of Labor, EEOC, Unemployment benefits
Posted in Discrimination, Labor & Employment, Wage and Hour
Posted in Discrimination, Labor & Employment, Wage and Hour
Can an Employee Accept a Severance Payment and Still File a Discrimination Claim?
According to the EEOC, the answer to that question is not only “Yes,” but that any severance agreement which limits the employee’s right to file a charge of discrimination is unenforceable and illegal. This week, the EEOC filed suit against…
Employers Beware: Workplace Bullying Laws On Horizon
By Shaan A. Rizvi — Over the last few weeks, sports media have incessantly covered the bullying scandal involving Richie Incognito and Jonathan Martin, two current Miami Dolphins’ players, in which Incognito left threatening and abusive comments on Martin’s voicemail.…
Don’t Mess With Texas
On November 4, 2013, the state of Texas sued the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission over its recently promulgated “enforcement guidance” related to background check policies and the hiring of felons. The lawsuit, found here, states that “The state of Texas…
Federal Government Shutdown – Who is Open?
With the federal government mired in an extended shut down, I thought it would be interesting to take stock of which agencies are working and which are not in case you have an ongoing investigation and are wondering whether a…
EEOC Sues Alabama Company For Termination of Applicant With Dreadlocks
A recent lawsuit filed by the EEOC in Alabama is a good reminder of the scrutiny that will be brought to bear over a dress code policy which could be interpreted as having an adverse impact on a racial minority…
