01/31/2012
Criminal defendants are entitled to a public defender, but that’s not true for employees trying to sue for discrimination. Courts won’t often pay for legal assistance if the employee can do the work herself.
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01/31/2012
Employers that compile promotion lists based on test results should tell employees that the lists will be updated periodically.
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01/31/2012
Employers may be suspicious about a prospective worker’s claimed professional credentials or other certifications—especially if it seems like the documents may have been altered or forged. If you have such doubts, don’t hesitate to ask for clarification.
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01/31/2012
Some employees never forget an indignity. Years later, they may sue over something unrelated to the original wrong and try to bring the old offense into the case. That sometimes works if their claim alleges a hostile work environment. But if the hostility stopped years ago, chances are the court won’t consider the old claim.
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01/31/2012
The former general manager of Foxworth-Galbraith Lumber in Fort Worth is suing the company for age discrimination, claiming he was fired at the age of 55 and replaced by a 38-year-old man.
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01/31/2012
The former chief of the La Marque Fire Department is suing for race discrimination and retaliation after a series of run-ins with the city manager over alleged harassment within the department.
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01/31/2012
Employees who sue for discrimination have to prove they are members of a protected class, were qualified for the position they held, were terminated or subjected to another adverse action and were treated less favorably than employees outside their protected class. Employers that can show the employee was insubordinate can quickly win such cases.
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01/30/2012
The next time you conduct discrimination training, remind supervisors that discriminating against employees because of their spouses’ protected characteristics can be just as legally dangerous as direct discrimination against the employees themselves.
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01/27/2012
Winston-Salem based Salem Electric Co. has settled charges it discriminated against a black worker when it accused him of being responsible for breaking a number of light fixtures the company was supposed to install.
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01/27/2012
Thomasville City Schools will pay $25,000 and provide age discrimination training to key personnel under a settlement agreement with a would-be school principal and the EEOC.
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01/27/2012
Violence in the workplace is a harsh reality, but employers must provide a safe work environment. That may mean terminating employees who threaten other employees or get into fights.
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01/27/2012
Typically, employers that lose discrimination lawsuits have to pay the employee’s attorneys’ fees in addition to any jury award. But the opposite isn’t true—employees almost never have to pay their employer’s lawyers unless the case was frivolous.
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01/27/2012
Some employees are serial applicants, tossing their hats in the ring for every promotion opportunity that comes up. While they may be eternally optimistic, the constant interviewing can be a huge waste of time for managers who know, based on past interviews, that the employees won’t be good fits.
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01/27/2012
Do your managers have limited discretion in setting pay? If so, you may have a built-in way to prevent large class-action lawsuits over equal pay. It’s all because of last summer’s big Supreme Court decision in Wal-Mart, Inc. v. Dukes.
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01/27/2012
Sometimes, it’s a close call to decide who will be the best fit for a job or promotion. There may be several candidates with the relevant education, training and experience. If that’s the case, the decision may come down to who has the best “soft” skills—subjective qualities indicating a good fit. Checking applicants’ references can break that tie.
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