The thing about this law-blogging gig, other than the money, power and women, of course, is the pride of being first to post about a crazy new case. Last week, I missed out on the nude sunbather who sued an elementary school-employer for retaliation. Well, Jon Hyman at the Ohio…
It was Gloria Steinem who, in discussing President Bill Clinton’s indiscretions with Paula Jones and Kathleen Willey, fashioned the “one free grope” rule. That is, while not condoning President Clinton’s actions, Steinem concluded that one touching is not sexual harassment — at least as a matter law. Well, yesterday, the…
This according to this survey released yesterday from CareerBuilder.com. Working dads who were the sole breadwinners in their household were four times as likely to earn six figures, while working moms who are the sole breadwinners were nearly twice as likely to earn less than $35,000. However, money may not…
We’ve talked a fair amount about sexual stereotyping at the ole Handbook. Here I discussed the cluster created by offering crap assignments to a male employee because he fails to conform to a male stereotype. And of course, we have my “Ravishing Rick Rude” theory of same-sex harassment, which a federal…
Generally, a typical sexual harassment claim involves a supervisor or manager or co-worker making unwelcome sexual advances towards another employee. But what if, instead of the harasser being one of your employees, it’s an independent contractor. Does that absolve your company from liability? Is it a valid defense if one…
That’s right folks. It’s time for another edition of “Fact or Fiction” a/k/a “Quick Answers to Quick Questions” a/k/a QATQQ f/k/a “I don’t feel like writing a long blog post.” Try this one for size, folks. In this case, an employee argued that her former employer retaliated against her, by…
Two big EEOC pet peeves right now are: employers who discriminate in the hiring process; and employers who violate the Americans with Disabilities Act based on misconceived notions about how an individual’s health could impact that person’s ability to perform essential job functions. So, you’ve really got to be pushing…
Let this be a lesson to those who are thinking about selling “Wake The F*&k Up” Coffee, “The Hottest F*&king Nuts,” or “The Hottest F*&king Sauce.” Recently, I read this article from Clark Kauffman in the Des Moines Register about a cashier at the Last Chance Market in Iowa, who…
Recently, I gave a webinar about the interplay between the Family and Medical Leave Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. One of the takeaways there was that, when an employee’s 12 weeks of FMLA leave expire, you need to be thinking about ADA implications rather than processing a pink…
As an employment lawyer, part of my practice involves training employees and supervisors on employee handbooks. Most often, my training focuses on respect in the workplace. During these sessions, I employ many techniques to discourage the workforce from engaging in behavior that could create a hostile work environment. Usually, I’ll…