Discrimination

  • February 12, 2025

    United Airlines Asks Texas Judge To Toss COVID Vaccine Suit

    United Airlines has asked a Texas federal judge to toss a "mass action" filed by roughly 700 current and former workers accusing the airline of discriminating against employees who resisted COVID-19 vaccination, saying most of the plaintiffs lack jurisdiction.

  • February 12, 2025

    Red Cross Can't Knock Out Vax Refuser's Religious Bias Suit

    A Michigan federal judge declined Wednesday to declare a victor in a suit from a Christian nurse who claimed the American Red Cross unlawfully fired her for rejecting its COVID-19 vaccine mandate, saying the case — which was recently revived by the Sixth Circuit — should go to a jury.

  • February 12, 2025

    Nike Asks 9th Circ. To Claw Back Workplace Harassment Docs

    A lawyer for Nike urged a Ninth Circuit panel on Wednesday to block an Oregon local newspaper from publishing workplace harassment questionnaires provided by plaintiffs' attorney in pay equity litigation against the athletic apparel giant.

  • February 12, 2025

    Attorneys Feeling Impact Of Policy, Leadership Shifts At EEOC

    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's acting chair said a recent leadership shakeup at the agency hasn't impeded its routine functions, but employment attorneys say they've seen a general slowdown in EEOC investigations and a clear deprioritization of LGBTQ+ discrimination matters.

  • February 12, 2025

    Security Co. Inks $1.6M Deal To End EEOC Hiring Bias Suit

    A security company has agreed to pay $1.6 million to end a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit claiming it hired underqualified men for security officer jobs while turning away female applicants, according to a federal court filing Wednesday.

  • February 12, 2025

    Trump Admin Says NIL Payments Don't Have To Follow Title IX

    The U.S. Department of Education on Wednesday rescinded a directive for name, image and likeness compensation for athletes to not discriminate against women under Title IX guidelines, calling the guidance enacted in the final days of the Biden administration "overly burdensome" and "profoundly unfair.''

  • February 12, 2025

    Construction Co. Strikes Deal In EEOC Racial Harassment Suit

    A California construction company agreed to pay $730,000 to resolve a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lawsuit claiming that supervisors harassed Hispanic employees with racist remarks and derogatory slurs, the agency told a federal court.

  • February 12, 2025

    OPM Tells Agencies To Give Age Bias Notices In Trump Buyout

    The U.S. Office of Personnel Management instructed agencies to consider President Donald Trump's federal worker buyout plan to be an "exit incentive program" under federal age bias law, saying workers over 40 must be given notices and waive discrimination claims if they accept the offer.

  • February 12, 2025

    Starbucks Accused Of Flouting Mass. Polygraph Hiring Law

    Starbucks is ignoring a Massachusetts law requiring employers to inform job-seekers that the state doesn't allow the use of lie detector tests in employment decisions, according to a putative class action filed in state court.

  • February 12, 2025

    HR Worker Says NC County Fired Her For Taking Sick Leave

    A North Carolina county fired a human resources specialist who had worked for the county for eight years because she got sick and asked to take short-term medical leave, she said in a complaint in federal court.

  • February 11, 2025

    Trump Tells Agencies To Plan 'Large-Scale' Cuts With Musk

    President Donald Trump signed an executive order Tuesday that directs agencies to prepare for "large-scale" cuts to the federal workforce and gives Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency the authority to approve the future hiring of career officials.

  • February 11, 2025

    Ye Accused Of Bullying And Calling Himself Hitler In Suit

    A former marketing specialist for Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, sued the "Heartless" rapper in California state court on Tuesday, accusing West of being a "bully" who openly called himself Hitler and threatened her using profanities on account of her being Jewish.

  • February 11, 2025

    Houston CBRE Broker Says He Was Fired For Complaints

    A Houston real estate broker asked a state court to force his company to arbitrate his claims of employment discrimination and retaliation, claiming that he was fired after complaining of company actions that included a COVID-19 vaccine mandate and poor treatment of female employees.

  • February 11, 2025

    6th Circ. Reopens Ex-Infusion Co. Worker's Vaccine Bias Suit

    The Sixth Circuit revived a lawsuit from a former employee of an infusion services company who claimed she was fired because of her religious objections to the provider's COVID-19 testing and vaccination policies, ruling Tuesday that a trial court was too quick to toss the case.

  • February 11, 2025

    DOD Bars New Transgender Troops Amid Court Challenge

    The U.S. military will stop enlisting transgender recruits and halt gender-affirming medical care for current service members, according to a U.S. Department of Defense memo filed in D.C. federal court litigation challenging the Trump administration's ban on transgender troops.

  • February 11, 2025

    Ye Sanctioned, Ordered To Sit For Depo In Fired Guard's Suit

    A California judge ordered Ye on Tuesday to sit for a deposition in a lawsuit from a former security guard at the embattled rapper's Donda Academy and sanctioned him $500 for skipping a deposition, while also scolding Ye's counsel about the attorney's apparently difficult "history" before his court.

  • February 11, 2025

    5th Circ. Says Worker's Sex Harassment Suit Too Vague

    The Fifth Circuit on Tuesday upheld a Texas school district's defeat of a former warehouse supervisor's lawsuit alleging his manager's constant oversharing about her sex life created a hostile work environment, saying he hadn't furnished enough detail to keep his case in court.

  • February 11, 2025

    Penn. College Wrongly Fired Sergeant With Cancer, Suit Says

    The University of Scranton failed to accommodate a police sergeant with renal cancer and eventually fired him after he fell asleep briefly during a period in which he was undergoing treatments, according to a lawsuit filed in Pennsylvania federal court.

  • February 11, 2025

    Hyundai Urges 11th Circ. To Uphold Dreadlock Policy Ruling

    A trial court rightly dismissed the suit of a woman who alleged she was racially targeted and fired from her job at a Hyundai plant due to a discriminatory policy prohibiting dreadlocks, Hyundai told the Eleventh Circuit, urging the court not to revive the suit.

  • February 11, 2025

    Black VP Says Citibank Showed Race, Disability Bias

    Citibank passed a Black vice president over for a higher role, excessively criticized her work and paid her less than white male colleagues because of her race and her requests to accommodate her diabetes, a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Florida federal court said.

  • February 11, 2025

    Judge Told, Again, To Strike Ex-Mich. State Coach's Firing Suit

    Michigan State University has told a federal judge it's time to permanently toss its former football coach's wrongful termination suit, saying Mel Tucker has repeatedly failed to plausibly allege that his firing was motivated by money, race or university leaders' self-interest.

  • February 11, 2025

    Former Marvel Exec Sues Disney For 'Old White Guy' Bias

    The former co-president of Marvel Entertainment has filed a discrimination lawsuit in California state court alleging he was passed over for a promotion to lead the consumer products division of parent company Disney because he is an "old white guy."

  • February 11, 2025

    5th Circ. Backs UPS' Win In Fired Black Worker's Bias Suit

    The Fifth Circuit upheld the dismissal of a Black former UPS worker's suit claiming she was retaliated against and fired for complaining that managers sexually harassed and mistreated her because of her race, finding she lacked proof that discrimination was at play.

  • February 11, 2025

    Worker Claims Company's Post-COVID Firing Was Illegal

    A General Dynamics subsidiary and submarine manufacturer was unjustified in its firing of a former employee who suffered from long COVID, according to a lawsuit the company removed to Connecticut federal court.

  • February 11, 2025

    Starbucks Maintains Illegal DEI Policies, Missouri Tells Court

    Starbucks puts illegal quotas in place to hire and promote more women and people of color and offers incentives to executives to meet these goals by connecting the quotas to their bonuses, the Missouri attorney general told a federal court Tuesday.

Expert Analysis

  • 10 Key Worker-Friendly California Employment Law Updates

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    New employment laws in California expand employee rights, transparency and enforcement mechanisms, and failing to educate department managers on these changes could put employers at risk, says Melanie Ronen at Stradley Ronon.

  • How PAGA Reform Can Inform Employer Strategies In 2025

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    While recent changes to California's Private Attorneys General Act will not significantly reduce PAGA claims, employers can use the new law to potentially limit their future exposure, by taking advantage of penalty reduction opportunities and more, say attorneys at Thompson Coburn.

  • How Deregulation Could Undermine Trump's Anti-DEI Agenda

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    While rolling back federal agency power benefited conservative policies during the Biden administration, it will likely undermine President Donald Trump's ability to wield agencies like the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to dismantle diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives beyond the federal workforce and into the private sector, says Ally Coll at the Purple Method.

  • Trump Should Pass On Project 2025's Disparate Impact Plan

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    The Trump administration should reject Project 2025's call to eliminate the disparate impact doctrine because, as its pro-business Republican creators intended, a focus on dismantling unnecessary barriers to qualified job candidates serves companies' best interests more successfully than the alternatives, says Susan Carle at American University.

  • Expect A Big Shake Up At The EEOC Under 2nd Trump Admin

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    During President-elect Donald Trump’s second term, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is likely to significantly shift its focus and priorities, especially where workplace DEI initiatives, immigration enforcement, LGBTQ+ rights and pregnancy protections are concerned, say attorneys at Stoel Rives.

  • 4 Novel Issues From The Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni Suits

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    A series of lawsuits arising from actress Blake Lively's sexual harassment and retaliation complaint against her "It Ends With Us" co-star, Justin Baldoni, present novel legal issues that employment and defamation practitioners alike should follow as the litigation progresses, say attorneys at Dorsey & Whitney.

  • Religious Accommodation Lessons From $12.7M Vax Verdict

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    A Michigan federal jury’s recent $12.7 million verdict against Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan starkly reminds employers of the risks they face when assessing employees’ religious accommodation requests, highlighting pitfalls to avoid and raising the opportunity to consider best practices to follow, say attorneys at Williams & Connolly.

  • Lessons From United's Axed Win In Firing Over Online Pics

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    In Wawrzenski v. United Airlines, a California state appeals court revived a flight attendant’s suit over her termination for linking photos of herself in uniform to her OnlyFans account, providing a cautionary tale for employers navigating the complexities of workplace policy enforcement in the digital age, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

  • How Trump Admin May Approach AI In The Workplace

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    Key indicators suggest that the incoming Trump administration will adopt a deregulatory approach to artificial intelligence, allowing states to fill the void, so it is critical that employers pay close attention to developing legal authority concerning AI tools, say attorneys at Littler.

  • Lessons Learned From 2024's Top FMLA Decisions

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    Last year's major litigation related to the Family and Medical Leave Act underscores why it is critical for employers to understand the basics of when leave and accommodations are required, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • Lessons Learned From 2024's Top ADA Decisions

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    Last year's major litigation related to the Americans with Disabilities Act highlights that when dealing with accommodation requests, employers must communicate clearly, appreciate context and remain flexible in addressing needs, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • Top 10 Employer Resolutions For 2025

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    While companies must monitor for policy shifts under the new administration in 2025, it will also be a year to play it safe and remember the basics, such as the importance of documenting retention policies and conducting swift investigations into workplace complaints, say attorneys at Krevolin Horst.

  • What To Expect From EEOC Next Year After An Active 2024

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    While highlights this year for the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission include its first-ever Pregnant Workers Fairness Act cases and comprehensive workplace harassment guidance, the question for 2025 is whether the commission will sustain its momentum or shift its focus in a new direction, says Shannon Kelly at GrayRobinson.