Title VII

Shifting explanations result in employer liability in Title VII retaliation claim

So a supervisor offers a couple of different explanations for action taken against an employee—how much does that matter? Maybe quite a bit, according to an opinion issued by Judge Jackson last week. See Mohammed v. Central Driving Mini Storage, Inc., Case No. 2:13cv00469 (E.D. Va. 2015). In this case, the court awarded a former […]

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Employers face possible claims for failure to accommodate even where there is no actual knowledge of a need for accommodation

Back in March, I posted about the case before the United States Supreme Court involving a girl who claimed that she was discriminated against because of her religion when Abercrombie & Fitch didn’t hire her because of her headscarf. The Tenth Circuit had found that because the plaintiff did not inform Abercrombie before its hiring […]

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Look out—possibly more hostile work environment claims ahead

Following the recent ruling of the Fourth Circuit after an en banc rehearing, employers may face more claims for hostile work environment. In Boyer-Liberto v. Fountainebleau Corp., No. 13-1473 (4th Cir. May 7, 2015), the Fourth Circuit overturned a prior decision by its own panel and the district court and found that an extremely serious […]

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Can the EEOC come after your company without at least trying to resolve the matter?

Not without at least complying with its duty to attempt to conciliate the matter. In a unanimous decision issued last week, the Supreme Court held that courts have the authority to review whether the EEOC has fulfilled its obligations under Title VII to attempt conciliation. Mach Mining, LLC v. EEOC, No, 13-1019 (April 29, 2015). […]

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Does an employee have to specifically ask for a religious accommodation?

The United States Supreme Court heard argument this past week on this very issue in the case of EEOC v. Abercrombie & Fitch Stores, Inc., a case appealed from the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. Samantha Elauf was a teenager in Tulsa, Oklahoma who applied to work at an Abercrombie & Fitch store in 2008. […]

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Punitive Damages Allowed in Title VII Case Even Where Only Nominal Damages Awarded

Title VII allows both compensatory and punitive damages and there is a statutory cap that applies, depending upon the size of the employer ($300,000 in the case of employers with more than 500 employees). 42 U.S.C. § 1981a. In a sexual harassment case before the Ninth Circuit, the question was whether punitive damages are available […]

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Walmart Sanctioned For Destroying Evidence in Title VII Retaliation Case

What happens if a critical piece of evidence has been destroyed—even if allegedly unintentionally and in the course of regular business? In a recent decision out of the Northern District of Georgia in a Title VII and ADEA retaliation case, the court found that the destruction of the evidence created a presumption that the stated […]

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District Court Has Jurisdiction over Retaliation Claim Related to Prior Charge, Even Prior Charge that was Untimely

The Fourth Circuit recently ruled that the district court properly ruled that it had jurisdiction over a claim of retaliation in violation of Title VII asserted by an Old Dominion University professor, even though the retaliation claim was not contained within her initial EEOC charge and that charge was, in fact, untimely. Hentosh v. Old […]

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Threat to Discipline Based on False Report to EEOC Could Support Retaliation Claim

In Cox v. Onondaga County Sheriff Department, No. 12-1526 (2d Cir. July 23, 2014), the Second Circuit recently held that threats made by an employer to charge employees with making a false report to the EEOC could establish a prima facie case of unlawful retaliation in violation of Title VII, shifting the burden of proof […]

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Ninth Circuit Reverses Summary Judgment on Issue of Whether Policy Prohibiting Male Deputies from Supervising Female Inmates is Discrimination

In a recent decision, the Ninth Circuit found that there were material issues of fact in dispute precluding summary judgment in favor of a county where male deputies claimed a policy prohibiting male deputies from supervising female inmates in the housing units of the jails operated by the County was unlawful sex discrimination in violation […]

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