Discrimination and Unlawful Harassment

A company called the plaintiff an ‘old timer’ and later fired him. But he LOST his age bias claim. Here’s why…

November 6, 2019 | by Eric B. Meyer

Image Credit: https://publicdomainvectors.org/en/free-clipart/Old-man-with-cane/46227.html

There are plenty of buzzwords and phrases that, when uttered in the workplace, made provide good fodder for an age discrimination claim.

For example, referring to someone as an ‘old timer’ can be direct evidence of age discrimination. Then, if an email were to surface in which the company writes that it is ʺlooking for young sharksʺ to become junior salespeople, well that’s not got either.

Except, here’s the thing. Continue reading

You’re worried that an obese applicant may later develop diabetes. Can you refuse to hire him?

October 31, 2019 | by Eric B. Meyer

Renée Gordon (FDA), Victovoi [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Last night, I read this recent Seventh Circuit opinion about a man who applied for a job with a railroad.

The job required some fairly physical work; namely, climbing and working on and around heavy equipment. The company’s policy was not to hire anyone with a BMI of 40 or greater because of the “substantially higher risk of developing certain conditions like sleep apnea, diabetes, and heart disease and the unpredictable onset of those conditions can result in sudden incapacitation.” Given the job requirements, this could create an unsafe workplace. So, the company told the applicant that he was welcome to reapply later if he lost the weight and kept it off.

Instead, the applicant sued, alleging a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Continue reading

This leaked deposition transcript from a race discrimination case is like a bizarro embassy scene from Lethal Weapon 2.

October 24, 2019 | by Eric B. Meyer

13-Lethal-Weapon-II-South-African-Embassy-Scene-Very-Funny-YouTube-1024x388

Image Credit: YouTube.com

Do you know that scene from Lethal Weapon 2? The one where Joe Pesci (Leo Getz) tells the representative from the South African embassy to convince his friend Danny Glover (‘Alphonse’) not to move to South Africa because he’s black.

I’ll pause for a sec while you watch it.

Common sense prevails! School reinstates black man it fired for repeating a racial slur directed at him as he told the person to stop

October 22, 2019 | by Eric B. Meyer

Image Credit: Photofunia.com

Yesterday, I blogged here about a black man who was fired for repeating a racial slur directed at him as he told the person to stop. According to multiple reports, his employer’s position was that it had a zero-tolerance policy on racial slurs in the workplace — inexcusable, regardless of context.

Well, the school hired him back.

Still, I asked readers of this blog how they would have handled a similar situation in their workplace. Continue reading

A black man was fired for repeating a racial slur directed at him as he told the person to stop

October 21, 2019 | by Eric B. Meyer

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

Last week, I quizzed you on how to handle a request for a religious accommodation to be excused from attending a weekend company holiday party. That was easy.

Today’s ‘what would you do’ is much more difficult. Continue reading

‘You better finish off your work quick, or I’ll ship you all off to the gas chambers.’

October 18, 2019 | by Eric B. Meyer

Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay

Said a grade school teacher (allegedly) to her class of 28 ten-year-olds, 11 of whom are Jewish. Continue reading

I’ll send Tommy back there to hit you in the head with a tack hammer if you get this HR compliance question wrong.

October 17, 2019 | by Eric B. Meyer

Image by Michel Oeler from Pixabay

We’re going to quiz you today on workplace religious accommodations.

(If you fail, instead of sending Tommy Boy, I’ll call the HR police to your office to tear up your SHRM-CP certification into little, tiny pieces, which we will then use to fill eggs to throw at your home on Mischief Night. Then, after you’ve finished cleaning up your shame, you can come to work on Halloween in costume as an ‘HR professional’ and we’ll all have another good laugh, and maybe give you a piece of candy.) Continue reading

What happens when an employee who is suing you dies mid-suit? Is the case over?

October 16, 2019 | by Eric B. Meyer

wallyg [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Not exactly. Continue reading

No more no-rehire provisions in your settlement agreements. What do you think?

October 15, 2019 | by Eric B. Meyer

By The people from the Tango! project – The Tango! Desktop Project, Public Domain, Link

Last night, I read with interest — lawyers always read with interest, that’s why we get to charge the big bucks — about a new employment law that will take effect in California at the start of 2020. Continue reading

Can your business prevent Oscar from living in a trash can without violating the ADA?

October 14, 2019 | by Eric B. Meyer

3-Grouch-Joker-Parody-SNL-YouTube-1024x599

Image Credit: Grouch (Joker Parody) – SNL (YouTube)

Let’s pretend that you operate a sanitation company. One of your employees — let’s call him ‘Oscar’ — tells you that he would like to take a multi-week sabbatical to learn more about his job and spend some time living in a trash can. Continue reading