Discrimination

  • February 25, 2025

    5th Circ. Eyes Congress' Quorum As Texas Fights PWFA

    The Fifth Circuit grappled Tuesday with whether the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was rightly blocked from enforcing the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act against the state of Texas, with several judges struggling to pinpoint whether the U.S. Constitution requires lawmakers' physical presence to have a quorum.

  • February 25, 2025

    Fired Worker Couldn't Justify COVID Vax Refusal, 3rd Circ. Says

    A software engineer who refused to comply with his company's COVID-19 vaccine policy couldn't claim he had a "sincere religious objection" while shielding his medical records from disclosure and vacillating on his reasons, a Third Circuit panel ruled Tuesday.

  • February 25, 2025

    5th Circ. Backs FedEx's Win In Worker's Age Bias Suit

    The Fifth Circuit refused to reopen a former FedEx manager's lawsuit alleging he was terminated because he was in his 50s, finding he couldn't overcome the delivery company's assertion that he was fired for failing to take action when a co-worker brought a BB gun to work.

  • February 25, 2025

    Ex-NJ Judge Says Judiciary Still Retaliating In Pension Fight

    A former New Jersey Superior Court judge has asked a state court to amend her suit challenging the denial of her disability pension application a second time, alleging that the state judiciary has further retaliated against her by requiring her to spend over $200,000 to qualify for a deferred early retirement pension.

  • February 25, 2025

    DOL Taps Former Agency Official As Exec Secretary

    The U.S. Department of Labor announced Tuesday that a former agency official who served under President Donald Trump's first administration was appointed as its executive secretary.

  • February 25, 2025

    King & Spalding Beats Bias Suit Over Summer Program

    King & Spalding LLP won't have to face a discrimination suit filed by a straight white woman who says she was dissuaded from applying to a summer associate program open only to "diverse" applicants, a Maryland federal court has ruled, saying she has not sufficiently demonstrated a real intent to apply to the position and therefore lacks standing.

  • February 25, 2025

    Special Counsel Calls Out Illegal Federal Worker Firings

    The firings of six probationary federal employees amid the Trump administration's mission to trim the federal workforce were unlawful, the head of the U.S. Office of Special Counsel said, urging the Merit Systems Protection Board to halt the dismissals while indicating more workers are in the same boat.

  • February 25, 2025

    Jones Day, Married Ex-Associates End Suit Over Family Leave

    Jones Day and two former associates have settled their acrimonious and long-running legal battle over the firm's allegedly sexist family leave policy, they told a Washington, D.C., federal court Tuesday.

  • February 25, 2025

    NY School District Chief Beats Librarian's Race Bias Suit

    A New York school superintendent defeated a librarian's suit claiming he revoked a job offer because she is Black, with a federal judge ruling the worker failed to show her race was considered during the hiring process.

  • February 24, 2025

    Ex-Prison Guard Loses Religious Bias Suit Against Teamsters

    A Chicagoland Teamsters local defeated a former prison guard's claim that it committed religious discrimination by failing to fight for her to get time off to observe the Sabbath, with an Illinois federal judge ruling Monday that the suit lacked facts to back up the claim.

  • February 24, 2025

    Liberty University Can't Sink Trans Ex-Worker's Bias Suit

    Liberty University must face a suit by a transgender former information technology employee alleging she was fired after announcing she was transitioning, with a Virginia federal judge saying the school's religious doctrine does not shield it from sex discrimination claims.

  • February 24, 2025

    Fla. Teacher Wins Appeal Over Memes Posted To Social Media

    A Florida state appellate court overturned a punishment handed to a math teacher who was suspended for three days over posting political memes to his Facebook profile, saying his right to free speech was violated because the posts were a matter of public concern and didn't disrupt school operations.

  • February 24, 2025

    Anti-Abortion Group Appeals In Reproductive Rights Law Row

    An anti-abortion organization is turning to the Second Circuit to try to revive its suit claiming a New York state law that bars employers from penalizing workers for their reproductive health decisions, such as ending a pregnancy, infringes on its constitutional rights.

  • February 24, 2025

    EEOC Gets OK To Advance Male Bias Suit Against Sports Bar

    A North Carolina federal judge on Monday rejected Battleground Restaurants Inc.'s bid to dismiss the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's lawsuit alleging the company systematically refused to hire men for front-of-house jobs at its Kickback Jack's sports bar, saying the commission has met the pleading standards for the claims.

  • February 24, 2025

    1st Circ. Won't Revive Dr.'s Retaliation Claim Against Hospital

    A radiologist can't reinstate a whistleblower and discrimination lawsuit against a Boston hospital she says sidelined her after she reported concerns about a colleague dubbed "the Boston Butcher," the First Circuit has ordered.

  • February 24, 2025

    3rd Circ. Says Discovery Defiance Dooms Vax Bias Suit

    The Third Circuit backed the dismissal of a Jehovah's Witness' suit claiming 3M fired her out of religious bias for opposing its COVID-19 vaccine mandate, saying it was a proper punishment for purposefully ignoring discovery orders probing whether her beliefs were sincere.

  • February 24, 2025

    EEOC Agrees To Deal In Amputee Refusal-To-Hire Suit

    An Atlanta-based company that contracts with mine sites will pay $25,000 to end a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit alleging it would not hire a worker to drive a dump truck because he's a right-arm amputee, according to a Georgia federal court filing.

  • February 24, 2025

    Penn Can't Escape Ex-Arabic Lecturer's Age Bias Case

    The University of Pennsylvania can't escape a former Arabic language lecturer's lawsuit claiming he was let go because he was in his 60s, a federal judge ruled Monday, saying his allegations were detailed enough to suggest his age may have been a factor in his removal.

  • February 24, 2025

    Museum Cleared To Fire Hurt Worker After 4 Leave Extensions

    A California appeals court declined to revive a former HVAC technician's suit claiming the J. Paul Getty Trust illegally fired him while recovering from an on-the-job leg fracture, saying terminating him instead of granting a fifth request for indefinite medical leave was reasonable.

  • February 24, 2025

    Fired IBM Workers Wrap Up Age Bias Lawsuit With Co.

    IBM Corp. and 16 former employees have resolved a lawsuit claiming the technology giant unlawfully fired older workers to make room for millennials, according to New York federal court filings.

  • February 24, 2025

    Justices Nix Whistleblower Suit Over Arbitral Vacatur Limits

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to review a petition that raised questions about the standards under which courts can vacate or enforce arbitral awards, in a case brought by a whistleblower who sought to challenge an arbitral award favoring his former employer.

  • February 21, 2025

    Trump Blocked From Implementing Anti-DEI Orders, For Now

    A Maryland federal judge on Friday temporarily barred the Trump administration from implementing the bulk of his executive orders aiming to slash diversity, equity and inclusion programs in the public and private sectors, ruling that the orders are likely unconstitutionally vague and illegally restrict free speech.

  • February 21, 2025

    DOJ Hits Judge Weighing Trans Troops Ban With Complaint

    The U.S. Department of Justice on Friday filed a misconduct complaint against the D.C. federal judge overseeing litigation challenging President Donald Trump's executive order ostensibly banning transgender troops from serving in the military, accusing her of bias after she hammered government attorneys for answers they provided during a hearing earlier this month.

  • February 21, 2025

    Unions Lose Bid To Block Trump Admin Efforts To Gut USAID

    A Washington, D.C., federal judge Friday refused to grant a preliminary injunction barring the Trump administration from placing U.S. Agency for International Development employees on leave, halting funding and taking other steps that federal employee unions say are meant to illegally dismantle the foreign assistance agency.

  • February 21, 2025

    Up Next At High Court: Straight Discrimination & Trial Rights

    The U.S. Supreme Court will return to the bench Monday to debate whether majority-group plaintiffs should be held to higher evidentiary standards when bringing workplace discrimination claims and whether prisoners are entitled to jury trials when questions about pre-suit requirements are intertwined with the merits of their claims.

Expert Analysis

  • Why Employers Should Heed High Court Web Designer Ruling

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    While not an employment law ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in the First Amendment case 303 Creative v. Elenis raises serious questions for employers that constitute public accommodations and have related anti-discrimination policies, says Tanner Camp at Foley & Lardner.

  • What To Expect From The EEOC's Proposed Pregnancy Law

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    U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission regulations implementing the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act require accommodations for many conditions related to pregnancy and childbirth, and while the final rule won't be published until the public comment period expires in October, employers should act promptly, says Amy Gluck at FisherBroyles.

  • Employer Best Practices For Pay Transparency Compliance

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    With conflicting pay transparency and disclosure laws appearing across the country, employers must carefully develop different strategies for discussing compensation with employees, applicants, and off-site workers, disclosing salaries in job ads, and staying abreast of new state and local compliance requirements, says Joy Rosenquist at Littler Mendelson.

  • Congress Must Level The Employer Arbitration Playing Field

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    Federal courts have largely eviscerated state bans on arbitration of employment claims through Federal Arbitration Act preemption holdings, and they are also limiting the impact of the federal Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act, so Congress needs to step in and amend both laws, says Alan Kabat at Bernabei & Kabat.

  • What 11th Circ. Revival Of Deaf Employee's Bias Suit Portends

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    The Eleventh Circuit's recent Beasley v. O'Reilly Auto Parts decision, which created a circuit split involving the issue of linking accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act to essential job functions, is a curiosity about the court's analysis at least and a potential game changer for employer duties at most, says John Doran at Sherman & Howard.

  • What To Watch As Justices Take Up Title VII Job Transfer Case

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    With its recent decision to hear Muldrow v. City of St. Louis, the U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether an involuntary job transfer can count as employment discrimination under Title VII — an eventual ruling that has potential to reshape workplace bias claims nationwide, says Adam Grogan at Bell Law Group.

  • Parsing EEOC Guidance On Accommodating Low Vision

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    Employers need to examine recent Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidance on provisions for employees who are blind or partially sighted, particularly on the consequences of terminating an employee with blindness or low vision without meeting obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act, says Amy Epstein Gluck at FisherBroyles.

  • 5 Tips For Employers Handling Generative AI Privacy Risks

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    Employers should carefully consider the privacy implications of using generative artificial intelligence tools, and employ steps to mitigate the risks, such as de-identifying data, providing notice and identifying data flows, say Zoe Argento and Amy Kabaria at Littler.

  • Water Cooler Talk: 'The Bear' Serves Up Advice For Managers

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    Tracey Diamond and Evan Gibbs at Troutman Pepper chat with Ernst & Young’s Laura Yehuda about Hulu's "The Bear" and the best practices managers can glean from the show's portrayal of workplace challenges, including those faced by young, female managers.

  • Recalling USWNT's Legal PR Playbook Amid World Cup Bid

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    As the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team strives to take home another World Cup trophy, their 2022 pay equity settlement with the U.S. Soccer Federation serves as a good reminder that winning in the court of public opinion can be more powerful than a victory inside the courtroom, says Hector Valle at Vianovo.

  • Mass. Age Bias Ruling Holds Employer Liability Lessons

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    The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court’s recent ruling in Adams v. Schneider Electric — upholding a laid-off employee’s age discrimination claim — is an important reminder that employers may face liability even if a decision maker unknowingly applies a discriminatory corporate strategy, say attorneys at Armstrong Teasdale.

  • Regulating AI: Litigation Questions And State Efforts To Watch

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    In view of the developing legal and regulatory framework for artificial intelligence systems in the U.S., including state legislation and early federal litigation, there are practical takeaways as we look toward the future, says Jennifer Maisel at Rothwell Figg.

  • Regulating AI: An Overview Of Federal Efforts

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    The U.S. has been carefully managing a national policy and regulatory ecosystem toward artificial intelligence, but as AI technology continues to expand into our everyday lives, so too has its risks and the need for regulation, says Jennifer Maisel at Rothwell Figg.