Court Broadens Meaning of Adverse Employment Action

​A new ruling from the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will make it easier for employees to file discrimination lawsuits based on scheduling and other employment-related decisions. On Aug. 18, the... Read more »

Texas Governor Signs Preemption Bill, CROWN Act and Other Bills

​The Texas legislature meets only for approximately six months every other year. This session, many bills signed into law will impact employers. This article summarizes some of these new laws and how... Read more »

Court Reverses Jury Award to Fired Employee in Whistleblower Retaliation Case

​There was insufficient evidence to support a $300,000 jury award to a terminated restaurant server who sued her former employer, claiming whistleblower retaliation, a California appeals court recently ruled. The uncontested evidence... Read more »

Lab Tech Could Not Go Forward with Sexual Harassment Claim

​Takeaway: Where an employee alleging hostile environment sexual harassment never reported her supervisor’s allegedly offensive comments to HR despite her employer’s established anti-harassment policies, the worker could not go forward with her... Read more »

Courts Weigh Protections for LGBTQ+ Workers Fired by Religious Employers

​Religious employers are testing the application of anti-discrimination laws that protect LGBTQ+ workers in light of a recent Supreme Court decision that backed the religious freedom rights of business owners. Their federal... Read more »

EEOC Settles First-Ever AI Discrimination Lawsuit

​We’ve reached another milestone in the artificial intelligence revolution: The federal agency charged with enforcing anti-bias laws just recorded its first-ever settlement in a case involving AI discrimination in the workplace. The... Read more »

Offshore Drilling Corporation Wins Sexual Harassment Case

​A jury in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas recently cleared SLB, a multinational oilfield services firm, of sexual harassment and retaliation charges. A class-action lawsuit filed in June... Read more »

Court Says Question of Disability Accommodation Should Go to Jury

​Takeaway: Employers should be aware that a federal court said the determination of whether a requested accommodation, namely working from home, is a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act is... Read more »

Job Duty Changes, Minor Inconveniences Didn’t Support Discrimination Claim

​Takeaway: Claims of discrimination or retaliation based on an adverse employment action are unlikely to succeed where the plaintiff employee has suffered no financial harm. Courts generally will not view the realignment... Read more »

California Bill Seeks to Ban Caste-Based Discrimination Statewide

​A bill pending in California would clarify existing law by defining ancestry to include caste as protected within the state’s antidiscrimination statutes. On July 5, the California Senate voted 34-1 in favor... Read more »