Archives: EEOC

State Court Asked to ‘Weigh In’ on Whether Obesity Constitutes an Impairment Under Anti-Discrimination Law

By Jacob A. Bruner on October 16, 2018 Posted in EEOC, Health & Wellness

On Sept. 17, 2018, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals certified to the Washington Supreme Court the question of whether obesity qualifies as an “impairment” and thus a “disability” under the state’s anti-discrimination law. The case, titled Casey Taylor, et al. v. Burlington Northern Railroad Holdings Inc., et al., Case No. 16-35205 (9th Cir. Sept. … Continue Reading

Lessons Learned From the EEOC’s First Parental Leave Lawsuit

By Saima Sheikh on August 20, 2018 Posted in EEOC, Leave of Absence

In the U.S., many employers’ parental-leave programs prioritize birth mothers and offer limited benefits to fathers, adoptive parents, foster parents and LGBT parents. In 2015, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued Enforcement Guidance for Pregnancy Discrimination and Related Issues, which includes parental leave policies. However, not all employers have followed this guidance. Consequently, just … Continue Reading

EEOC Issues New Enforcement Guidance On National Origin Discrimination

By Fanny Ferdman and Amanda Van Hoose Garofalo on December 1, 2016 Posted in Discrimination, EEOC

On Nov. 21, 2016, the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued updated enforcement guidance on national origin discrimination for the first time in 14 years. Some may speculate whether this has anything to do with increased ethnic tensions in the wake of the presidential campaign and election results. Some also recognize that in … Continue Reading

Drawing the Line on Leave Policies for Employees With Disabilities

By Anat Maytal on August 4, 2016 Posted in EEOC

Within the past three months, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has secured nearly $9 million from companies that have committed violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by discriminating against and firing employees with disabilities who requested medical leave or exhausted their allotted medical leave to address those disabilities. For example, on … Continue Reading

Shorter May Be Better: Adapting To The EEOC’s New Position Statement Procedures

By Salomon Laguerre on March 24, 2016 Posted in EEOC

You’ve seen the headlines — the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) is changing the way Position Statements are handled during the course of an investigation – but what does it mean and is it really that big of a deal? Should employers be doing anything different when it comes to responding to EEOC Charges in … Continue Reading

New EEOC Equal Pay Reporting Proposal

By Ashley Schachter and Kevin Shaughnessy on February 8, 2016 Posted in EEOC

On January 29, 2016, the seventh anniversary of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced its proposed addition of pay data to currently required EEO-1 reports. The announcement has been the subject of much speculation for employers and attorneys, with many dreading an additional layer of administrative expenses for … Continue Reading

Has the Fifth Circuit Opened the Door for Potential Liability of Staffing Companies?

By Michael Lombardino on August 26, 2015 Posted in EEOC, Staffing Agency

In Burton v. Freescale Semiconductor Inc. and Manpower of Texas, LP, No. 14-50944, — F.3d —-, 2015 WL 4742174 (5th Cir. Aug. 10, 2015), the Fifth Circuit reversed the district court’s grant of summary judgment for two employers in a staff-leasing/joint-employer relationship. The Fifth Circuit’s New Test for Staffing Company Liability. In Burton, the Fifth … Continue Reading

EEOC v. Abercrombie & Fitch: When Religion and Fashion Collide

By Gregory Schmitz on June 8, 2015 Posted in EEOC, Retail

On June 1, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court, in an 8-1 decision, ruled in favor of a 17-year-old practicing Muslim, Samantha Elauf, who applied for a job at retailer Abercrombie & Fitch, but was denied employment because the black headscarf she wore in connection with her religion (known as a “hijab”) did not conform to … Continue Reading

Supreme Court Refs Call Foul on EEOC, NBA Playoff Edition

By Todd Lebowitz on April 29, 2015 Posted in Discrimination, EEOC

The heads of officiating at the Supreme Court called a technical foul on the EEOC for being too Cavalier about its obligation to conciliate before lacing up its Converse All-Stars and heading to court. Mach Mining v. EEOC (April 29, 2015). The need for judicial instant replay arose when a woman applied for a coal … Continue Reading

Court Dismisses EEOC’s Attack on Severance Agreements, But Not on the Merits

By Todd Lebowitz on October 13, 2014 Posted in EEOC, Retail

The EEOC’s lawsuit against CVS, which alleged that the company’s severance agreements were impermissibly restrictive, has been dismissed, but not for the reasons employers would have hoped. EEOC v. CVS Pharmacy, Inc., No. 1:14-cv-863 (N.D. Ill. Oct. 7, 2014). On October 7, 2014, Judge Darrah released the Court’s written opinion granting summary judgment to CVS, … Continue Reading

EEOC’s Battle Against Employee Releases Heats Up

By Dennis Duffy and Melissa Siebert on May 19, 2014 Posted in EEOC, Retail

In February, we commented on the EEOC v. CVS Pharmacy, Inc. case, where the EEOC filed a “pattern or practice” lawsuit against CVS in Illinois federal court, claiming that CVS’ employee releases discourage the filing of EEOC charges and cooperation with the EEOC in investigations. As we previously noted, the EEOC is challenging several release … Continue Reading

Sixth Circuit Delivers Knockout to EEOC in Another Background Check Case

By Todd Lebowitz on April 15, 2014 Posted in Background Checks, EEOC

The EEOC suffered a major setback on April 9th when the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed summary judgment in the highly watched background check case of EEOC v. Kaplan Higher Education Corporation, et al. The Sixth Circuit chastised the EEOC for using a flawed methodology to try to prove that using credit checks as … Continue Reading

The EEOC Amplifies its Focus on Religious Discrimination

By Amy J. Traub and Laura Robinson on March 25, 2014 Posted in Discrimination, EEOC, Reasonable Accommodation

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) received 3,721 charges alleging religious discrimination in fiscal year 2013. In partial response to these charges, earlier this month, the EEOC issued new technical assistance publications addressing religious dress and grooming in the workplace under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”). Given the … Continue Reading

Another Reminder That Inflexible Employment Policies and the ADA Don’t Play Well Together – Court Refuses to Dismiss EEOC Action Based on “100% Healed” Policy

By Steve Sutton on February 19, 2014 Posted in Discrimination, EEOC

One theme that resonates throughout court decisions and EEOC filings over the last few years is that application of inflexible employment policies to disabled employees often runs afoul of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Such is the case with “100% healed” policies, which require employees returning from leaves of absence to do so without … Continue Reading

Pregnant Employees Become the Subject of Heightened Attention and New Legislation

By Jeanine Conley and Laura Scully on February 18, 2014 Posted in Discrimination, EEOC, New Jersey, New York, Reasonable Accommodation

Over the past decade, the number of claims pregnant workers have filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) has risen by almost 50 percent, according to the National Women’s Law Center (“NWLC”). Most of these workers assert that their employers denied them reasonable accommodations, such as bathroom breaks, periodic rest breaks, breaks to facilitate … Continue Reading

Not Settling for Less: The EEOC’s Latest Challenge to Employee Releases

By Dennis Duffy on February 13, 2014 Posted in EEOC

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) recently filed a “pattern or practice” lawsuit against CVS Pharmacy, Inc., alleging that CVS uses an “overbroad, misleading and unenforceable Separation Agreement” that deters its employees from filing EEOC charges and interferes with employees’ ability to communicate with the EEOC and state fair employment practice … Continue Reading

Texas Files Suit to Strike Down EEOC Background Check Guidance

By Amy J. Traub, Nathan A. Schacht and Todd Lebowitz on November 12, 2013 Posted in Background Checks, Discrimination, EEOC

Don’t mess with Texas. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) usually forces employers who are subject to Title VII to play defense. The State of Texas, however, has upended that approach. On November 4, 2013, Texas filed a federal lawsuit that seeks to strike down the EEOC’s April 2012 Enforcement Guidance limiting employers’ use … Continue Reading

Criminal Background Checks: The Saga Continues

By Melissa Siebert on October 16, 2013 Posted in Background Checks, EEOC

In the past few weeks there have several noteworthy decisions regarding employers’ use of criminal background information to make hiring decisions. In one case, EEOC v. Peoplemark (6th Cir., Oct. 7, 2013), the Sixth Circuit handed the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) a significant bill for attorneys’ and expert fees exceeding $750,000, when the court found … Continue Reading

Court Slams EEOC on Background Check Lawsuit

By Pat Muldowney on August 18, 2013 Posted in Background Checks, Discrimination, EEOC, Retail

Last week, a district court in Maryland granted summary judgment in favor of Freeman, Inc. (“Freeman”), a service provider for corporate events, with respect to a nationwide pattern and practice lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”). EEOC v. Freeman, No. 09-CV-2573 (D. Md. Aug. 9, 2013). In its lawsuit, the EEOC … Continue Reading

Employers Must Abide By GINA Regulations When Providing Health Screenings

By Anat Maytal and Joyce Ackerbaum Cox on August 7, 2013 Posted in EEOC, Health & Wellness

Workplace health and wellness programs are becoming increasingly popular throughout the country, and this is not surprising at all, given how beneficial such programs can be for both employers and employees. After all, healthy employees tend to be happier and more productive employees, which in turn makes employers happy and keeps healthcare costs down. Everyone wins. … Continue Reading

State Attorney Generals Challenge EEOC Criminal Background Check Lawsuits

By Melissa Siebert on July 29, 2013 Posted in Background Checks, EEOC

As we reported in our July 15, 2013 blog post, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently filed class action lawsuits against Dollar General and BMW challenging those employers’ use of criminal background checks. Specifically, the EEOC alleged that Dollar General’s and BMW’s application of background check policies had a racially discriminatory impact on applicants … Continue Reading

EEOC Files Two Race-Based Class Action Lawsuits on Criminal Background Checks

By Melissa Siebert on July 15, 2013 Posted in Background Checks, Discrimination, EEOC, Retail

On June 11, 2013, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed separate class action lawsuits against two employers – Dollar General Stores and BMW – alleging that these employers engaged in racial discrimination by using criminal background checks to disqualify applicants from employment. The BMW case filed in South Carolina has a 69-person class, and is location specific. … Continue Reading

Employees Must Prove Retaliation Was “But-For” Cause of Employment Action

By Scott McIntyre on July 9, 2013 Posted in EEOC, Retaliation, Supreme Court

Employers are well aware that poorly performing employees may lodge baseless retaliation claims as a smokescreen to interfere with legitimate discipline. In fact, the number of employee retaliation claims filed with the EEOC has nearly doubled in the past 15 years, and the law continues to create new opportunities for these kinds of claims. But … Continue Reading