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Pregnant employees are entitled to workplace accommodations, according to new guidance issued July 14 by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Because the Pregnancy Discrimination Act requires that employers treat pregnant employees the same as other workers “not so affected but similar in their ability or inability to work” — and because the Americans with […]
A school head janitor was caught goofing off during work hours. That is bad enough. Unfortunately, he was on the roof sunbathing in the nude (luckily on his stomach).
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced May 15 its intent to issue regulations that create a plan for federal employers to serve as “model employers” of workers with disabilities — a plan that may include a hiring goal, according to the commission. The announcement came just weeks after a 7-percent hiring goal for federal […]
While most courts agree that coming to work regularly is an essential job function, many courts also have found that leave for a specified period of time is a reasonable accommodation if it does not cause an undue hardship. Chai Feldblum, a commissioner with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, discussed “leave as a reasonable accommodation” under the ADA […]
Q. Who is covered by the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)? A. The ADEA covers all employers with 20 employees or more and applies to all employees and job applicants aged 40 or over. Q. What employment actions are prohibited by the ADEA? A. The ADEA prohibits age discrimination in any term or condition […]
An employee’s obesity may be a disability covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act, a federal district court has held. The employer challenged the claim, arguing that the ADA does not cover obesity, but the court disagreed, refusing to dismiss the suit. Joseph Whittaker sued his former employer, America’s Car-Mart, Inc., alleging that the company […]
Age discrimination in the workplace can be subtle. Yes, we’re all aghast when we read about direct evidence of discrimination, like the manager who allegedly said he fired an employee because she was “old and ugly.” But most age discrimination claims are based on circumstantial rather than direct evidence. Take for example the age discrimination […]
Today’s Advisor contains a guest column that first appeared on HR.BLR.com, called Lessons from JPMorgan Chase’s $1.45 million EEOC settlement. By Jamie A. LaPlante In a much-publicized case, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) obtained a $1.45 million settlement on behalf of female employees who worked in JPMorgan Chase’s Columbus, Ohio, office. The EEOC alleged […]
In early 2013, the California Court of Appeals ruled in favor of an employee in a so-called “mixed-motive” case (when an employer has both unlawful and legitimate reasons for taking an adverse employment action) brought under the state Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA).
Yesterday, we looked at the case of a California employee, Lorena Alamo, who successfully established that her termination was due to improper “mixed motives” (the employer had both unlawful and legitimate reasons for the firing).