A maintenance mechanic in Illinois received 28 disciplinary-action forms from his supervisor. Ultimately, he was offered two choices: (1) accept a demotion to a non-mechanic position and take a significant pay cut; or (2) keep the position, fight the discipline, but face potential termination. On the advice of his union…
Articles Posted in Discrimination and Unlawful Harassment
ADA potpourri, anyone?
Smells like patchouli. Or is that teen spirit? Hey, it’s been a long day. Can an employer insist on regular attendance without violating the ADA? Maybe. says Robin Shea at the Employment and Labor Insider. And forget about indefinite leave as a reasonable accommodation under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination…
Mini horse + reasonable accommodation lawsuit = I told you so!
Remember back in July 2011 when I told you that a miniature horse might be reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act? Giddy-up! I whinny! Ok, I’ll quit horsing around. (I mare or may not be referring to a printed-out list of horse puns as I type this…) More…
Uneven severance packages may create discrimination claims
A severance agreement helps to allow businesses to ensure that former employees don’t sue. The concept is fairly simple: in exchange for $X, the former employee agrees to release the company from every claim under the sun from the beginning of time through the date the former employee signs the…
Meyer(s) on Pending Employment Bills, Social Media, and Slides
On Employment Legislation: Just when you thought you had the employment law landscape figured out, along comes pending legislation that could change everything. From age discrimination claims to workplace flexibility to unionization and labor organizing, new bills in the House and Senate may change the way you run your business.…
Is a workplace “English-only” rule legal?
Unfair treatment because of one’s language may be related to race or national origin discrimination. Indeed, language may be used as a covert basis for discrimination. But that’s not always so. A recent case and some helpful nuggets on English-only rules after the jump… In a recent NJ case, the…
Employment discrimination by the numbers: Foreign Edition
Now in autotune. (Betcha didn’t expect that). Yesterday, we were rapping (without the benefit of autotune) about immigration status and unlawful discrimination and concluded that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 does not prohibit workplace discrimination on the basis of immigration status (although national-original discrimination is unlawful). And…
Are aliens protected from illegal workplace discrimination?
I had this song in my head for about two hours on Sunday. Then I listened to the Trent Reznor version, ick…. This blog post has a point, right? Oh yeah, discrimination. A little reminder from a recent Eight Circuit case, Guimaraes v. SuperValue, Inc., that when it comes to employees with…
EEOC clarifies ADEA “reasonable factors other than age” defense
Yesterday, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued its “Final Regulation on Disparate Impact and Reasonable Factors Other than Age” (RFOA) under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA). Wait, wha, wha, what the heck is an RFOA? (The Cliff Notes versions because, like, you could click…
Distinguishing state & federal disability-accommodation claims
Let’s say you operate a business in NJ. Your disabled employee comes to you requesting an accommodation for his disability. Does the mere failure to provide that accommodation trigger a claim under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (NJLAD)? What about under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)? I…