You guys remember ‘Central Park Karen,’ right? I wrote about her last year. ‘Central Park Karen’ (not her real name) is a white woman who worked as a portfolio manager for an investment company in New York. That is until a video went viral on social media. That video depicted…
Jerk employees are responsible for creating most of the hostile work environment claims I get hired to defend. But companies must act quickly to prevent workplace discrimination, regardless of the source. A new lawsuit that the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission just filed serves as a good reminder for employers.…
If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? I don’t intend this blog post to answer that question specifically. However, there is an employment law analogy that I will address today. Plaintiffs alleging they suffered a hostile work…
I had planned to blog about this Fifth Circuit decision for a while. The appellate court concluded that a plaintiff who had pleaded that his supervisor directly called him a “Lazy Monkey A__ N___” in front of his fellow employees stated an actionable claim of hostile work environment. But then…
As a lawyer, a mediator, a workplace investigator, and a blogger, I’ve seen my fair share of employees claiming that someone(s) subjected them to a “hostile work environment.” But here’s the thing. Unless the behavior about which the individual complains is based on that person’s protected class, the law won’t…
What I’ve got for you today is another hostile work environment decision. But, unlike yesterday’s general civility code violation, well short of the pervasive or severe behavior that could interfere with an employee’s working conditions, today’s is a doozy. We’re talking about four instances of racial harassment: an offensive note,…
On Monday, I blogged about a weekend incident in which New York Yankees third baseman Josh Donaldson and White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson in which Mr. Anderson claimed that Mr. Donaldson referred to him as “Jackie,” a reference to Hall of Famer Jackie Robinson. Mr. Donaldson admitted calling Mr. Anderson…
During the third inning of Saturday’s game between the Chicago White Sox and the New York Yankees, Yankees’ third baseman Josh Donaldson and White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson had to be separated after an exchange of words (and some earlier in the game) in which Mr. Anderson claimed that Mr.…
Hopefully, this question doesn’t have you clutching your pearls. I assume that your business has both an anti-harassment policy and regular training. But some of your employees are jerks. Some use foul language, make rude comments, and even cross the line into behavior that may foster a hostile work environment,…
On Friday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill to prohibit discrimination based on an individual’s texture or style of hair with a vote of 235-189. It’s called the “Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair Act of 2022” or the “CROWN Act of 2022,” and you…