Blog Posts: Preventing Discrimination and Harassment
Gays and Lesbians Still Face Workplace Challenges
Basketball’s Jason Collins came out of the closet last month and made history by becoming the first openly gay, active major league athlete. By all accounts, he received a very warm reception. Protecting his workplace rights as a gay male, however, would be no slam dunk were it to come to that – at least not for now.
Workplace Anti-Discrimination Enforcement is White Hot
Private employment-discrimination lawsuits are down, but the federal government is taking up much of the slack.
5 Tips for Discussing Gender-Related Issues in the Workplace
Managers often find it difficult to raise gender–related issues in the workplace because they think it’s inappropriate to discuss these issues with employees. Some companies, out of liability concerns, even advise their managers to avoid these topics entirely.
Rutgers Ejects Abusive Coach
Rutgers University faces a controversy at a time when its athletic program is preparing to join the Big Ten, an athletic conference that will put the school in the national spotlight and generate millions of dollars in revenue. On April 3, the university fired Mike Rice, the head coach of the men’s basketball team, after a video containing footage of team practices between 2010 and 2012 surfaced. The video showed Rice kicking and hurling basketballs at players and berating them with vulgar language and homophobic slurs. These events come just two years after the suicide of a Rutgers student, Tyler Clementi, following bullying involving his sexual orientation.
7 Tips for Dealing with Office Romances
Valentine's Day offers the perfect occasion to reflect on romance, which can bloom anytime, anywhere — even in the workplace. Relationships between co-workers are bound to occur. These relationships, however, can result in serious liability for employers. If a relationship ends and the involved employees must continue working together, the risk of sexual–harassment claims may increase. Even if they wanted to, employers probably could not completely prevent office romances. They can, however, reduce their risk of liability stemming from these romances by practicing the following tips:
EEOC Comes to Defense of “Overqualified” Job Applicant
In a federal lawsuit filed on December 10, 2012, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged Bay State Milling, a major U.S. flour and grain producer, with violating the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. The EEOC alleges Bay State Milling’s plant manager told Gary Legore, a 52-year-old male, that he would not be hired for a miller position because the manager was seeking a “younger” person he could “groom.”
EEOC Scores Settlement in Pregnancy Discrimination Case
On November 28, 2012, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced that it reached a settlement in a discrimination lawsuit it brought against an Arizona restaurant. The EEOC alleged that West Sand, LLC, dba Sandbar Mexican Grill discriminated against a pregnant employee by refusing to let her work Sunday shifts during football season. The EEOC argued that West Sand had a policy of denying such shifts to pregnant employees because it believed its male customers did not want to see pregnant women while watching football games.
Supreme Court Hears Arguments in “Supervisor” Liability Case
On August 26, 2012, the Supreme Court heard arguments in the case of Vance v. Ball State University, in which the parties are asking the Court to determine the definition of “supervisor.” (Our previous blog post on this case can be found here).
Supreme Court Hears Arguments in “Supervisor” Liability Case
On August 26, 2012, the Supreme Court heard arguments in the case of Vance v. Ball State University, in which the parties are asking the Court to determine the definition of “supervisor.” (Our previous blog post on this case can be found here).
English-Only Policies Must Have “Business Necessity”
Some employers have policies that require employees to speak English while at work, which naturally raise questions of discrimination. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and some courts have adopted a “business necessity” rule for English-only policies in the workplace.
