Helene Tyrrell worked as a line chef at a jockey club in Arkansas during the Winter of 2010. She claimed that immediately after she started working, and pretty much throughout her employment, the n-word was bandied about like you and I would say “hello” and “goodbye.” However, only once was…
To all the haters of social-media policies: If nothing less, the social-media policy reminds employees that if they act the fool online, it may impact their standing in the workplace, and, ultimately, cost them their jobs. Some employees, however, are just so ignorant. Thus, I doubt that any employer policy…
Take a few minutes to read this decision. It will blow your mind. Here’s the long and short of it: Three black employees sue for race discrimination claiming that they were subjected to a racially-hostile work environment. The court actually did the math: During the relevant time period, Facer…
Back in 2010, Douglas Clayton had a rough Summer. In August, Mr. Clayton was employed as a deckhand on a boat in Louisiana — that is, until one of his white co-workers allegedly raised a wrench to Clayton and told him to get his “stupid mother f**king n**ger ass” off…
[Editor’s Note: Because “Playing the Race Card” was already taken] The title of this post is comprised of the seven poorly-chosen words from a Vice President of Operations at a Detroit casino right before the casino terminated a white employee for allegedly botching supervision of a dealer card shuffle. What…
[If you listen carefully, you can actually hear the sound of page-hits and prurient reader interest cascading at The Employer Handbook. It’s got a little funky Salt n’ Pepa beat to it…] Last May, I slobbered over blogged here about a former Indianapolis Colts’ cheerleader who sued the team claiming…
What if I told you that a female black employee was called “monkey” and “nappy head Raggedy Ann” at work? What if I then told you that the employee subsequently sued in New Jersey state court; quite possibly the most plaintiff-friendly jurisdiction in the U.S. — next to California? And…
Yesterday, the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued updated Enforcement Guidance on employer use of arrest and conviction records in employment decisions under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. (Title VII is the federal statute that prohibits discrimination in the workplace based on race, color, religion,…
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…
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…