Why the Increase in Demeaning Women Online Matters for Your Workplace: What's the Tea in L&E?
What's the Tea in L&E? "Passive" Harassment: When Does Workplace Decor Contribute to a Hostile Environment?
What's the Tea in L&E? Truth Hurts or Rumors? Lizzo’s Harassment Allegations Serve As A Good Reminder
Middle East Conflict Impact on the Healthcare Workplace: An HR Perspective
The Labor Law Insider - Pause Before You Discipline: NLRB Turns Against Civility in Lion Elastomers Decision
Labor & Employment Law: Vermont and Federal Legislative Update
Politics at Work
Employment Law Now: III-47 - New York, New World
III-41- Things That Make You Go “Hmmm” in Employment Law
Ann Curry’s Departure from the Today Show Presents a Number of Lessons for Employers
Over the last few years, employers have faced new and expanded obligations under state and federal employment laws relating to prohibition of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation in the workplace. These changes stem...more
Court decisions coming out of France display a desire to better protect employees and dispel harassment, whether moral or sexual, in the workplace. With this evolving caselaw emerges new definitions and thresholds for...more
On January 14, 2025, the Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced a resolution agreement with the University of Washington following a Title VI complaint of alleged discrimination and harassment based...more
Consequent to increasing sectarian tensions on campus, ATIXA members tell us they are seeing a rise in anonymous racist, homophobic, transphobic, Islamophobic, pro/anti-Israel messages, and other discriminatory comments...more
Employers wanting to create a more equitable and legally compliant workplace while also reducing their risk of litigation may want to pay particular attention to the California Court of Appeal’s recent decision in Wawrzenski....more
One instance of a coworker directing the “N-word” to a Black employee can rise to the level of being so severe as to make for a racially hostile work environment in violation of the California Fair Employment and Housing Act...more
In California, even a single racial slur by a non-management employee may now give rise to employer liability under certain circumstances. In Bailey v. San Francisco District Attorney’s Office, the California Supreme Court,...more
JT Washington by JT Washington Today, technology and social media are integral parts of our daily lives. Social media has transformed how we communicate and express ourselves. However, this transformation has brought new...more
Federal Agency Charges Automotive Retailer Failed to Protect Workers from Harassment by Co-Workers and Customers - MIAMI – Advance Auto Parts, an automotive parts retail chain, violated federal law when it allowed its...more
You might think what happens outside the workplace stays outside the workplace, but as the Ninth Circuit recently ruled, you can be sued by one employee for what another employee posts online....more
As the workplace continues to take a new shape, the distinction between “workplace conduct” and “off duty” conduct continues to fade for many. After a recent Ninth Circuit ruling, employers must be more vigilant than ever in...more
Recently, the California Supreme Court found that a plaintiff’s claim based on a single (disputed) racial epithet by a non-supervisory coworker was sufficient to form the basis of a hostile work environment claim—it was...more
In a win for employers, the Connecticut Supreme Court defines “supervisor” narrowly for purposes of vicarious employer liability under Connecticut Fair Employment Practices Act - Under Connecticut’s civil rights law, an...more
Plumbing Contractor Will Compensate Black and Hispanic Plumbers Subjected to Racially Hostile Work Environment and Retaliation - TAMPA, Fla. – J.A. Croson, a Sorrento, Florida-based plumbing and HVAC contractor, agreed to...more
Between hybrid work, flexible schedules, online meetings, and the ubiquity of social media, the lines between in and out of office conduct continue to get murkier and create potential tagalong liability that persists for...more
On July 25, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rejected the notion that harassing conduct must occur inside the workplace to be considered actionable. The court also affirmed the notion that “the totality...more
Summary: Courts must consider allegations of a racially hostile workplace “from the perspective of a reasonable person belonging to the racial or ethnic group of the plaintiff.” Under this framework, “a single racial epithet...more
Prior to the advent of social media, employers were generally comfortable drawing a bright line between what employees did on their own time and workplace misconduct. Those bygone times, however, have been replaced by a...more
The following may be a true story. The events depicted allegedly took place in Lompoc, California, in 2020. Out of deference to the judges involved, their names have not been used. Out of respect for the victim, her story...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently ruled, in Okonowsky v. Garland, No. 23-55404, that an employer may be held liable for a Title VII hostile work environment claim based on harassing content posted on an...more
In a July 29, 2024, opinion, the California Supreme Court reaffirmed that a single use of a racial epithet can be severe enough to be actionable harassment under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA)....more
Social media has truly changed our world, both in and outside of the workplace. It has evolved into a daily habit for many of us; the way we get news about the world and our friends, the way we shop, gossip, and much more. It...more
Employers have a duty to ensure that their workplaces are not hostile, both in the physical and virtual worlds. This responsibility extends to both actual and constructive knowledge of potential issues....more
The Connecticut Supreme Court recently adopted the U.S. Supreme Court's relatively narrow definition of “supervisor” for use in determining when employers are liable under the Connecticut Fair Employment Practices Act (CFEPA)...more
The New York City Council recently amended Sections 8-109 and 8-502 of the New York City Administrative Code, directly affecting employment agreements. ...more