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Discrimination

  • May 23, 2025

    DOL Picks New Acting Leaders For Wage Compliance Unit

    The U.S. Department of Labor announced Friday a new acting administrator as well as four policy advisers to serve in the agency's division tasked with ensuring employers pay their employees in line with federal minimum wage and overtime laws.

  • May 23, 2025

    EEOC's Acting Chair Eyes Federal Sector Program Revisions

    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission told federal agencies they will no longer face monetary penalties for disobeying orders during administrative proceedings and warned that workers shouldn't immediately lose opportunities when they're accused of bias, moves the EEOC framed as opening efforts to remold its federal sector program.

  • May 23, 2025

    Cooley Hires 'Next-Gen' Boston Labor & Employment Partner

    A Choate Hall & Stewart LLP partner has joined Cooley LLP's labor and employment practice and global litigation department in Boston.

  • May 23, 2025

    Ruby Tuesday Fired Bartender On Medical Leave, Court Told

    Ruby Tuesday fired a bartender while she was out on medical leave recovering from a broken hip that she sustained in a car accident and refused to let her return to her former role, she said in a suit filed in North Carolina federal court.

  • May 23, 2025

    Southwest Flight Attendant Fights To Revive Nixed Sanctions

    A flight attendant urged the Fifth Circuit to reconsider its move to axe a contempt order against Southwest Airlines in her wrongful termination suit, arguing it shouldn't be scrapped just because the panel took issue with court-ordered religious liberty training for Southwest attorneys.

  • May 23, 2025

    Ex-Immigration Judge Fights To Keep Fla. Bias Suit Alive

    A former immigration judge has urged a Florida federal court to reject U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi's bid for an early win against her disability bias claims, arguing she was denied a hardship transfer and reasonable accommodation due to her gender and age.

  • May 22, 2025

    California City Cleared In Employment Discrimination Trial

    A Los Angeles jury cleared the city of Baldwin Park, California, of liability on Thursday in a wrongful-termination suit by a former longtime employee who claimed that she was forced to resign after complaining about race and gender bias and misuse of federal housing funds.

  • May 22, 2025

    Levi Strauss Calls For Sanctions Against Boies Schiller

    Levi Strauss is seeking more than $15,000 from Boies Schiller Flexner LLP and training for the firm's litigation attorneys in the proceeding over a former executive's sex discrimination claims, telling a California federal judge that Boies Schiller flouted deadlines and refused to meet with opposing counsel.

  • May 22, 2025

    Tire-Maker Axed Workers Over Prescription Drugs, EEOC Says

    A specialty tire manufacturer violated federal disability law when it terminated employees who lawfully took narcotics, opioids and other prescription medications to manage pain, even after multiple doctors cleared them to work, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleged in Tennessee federal court.

  • May 22, 2025

    Medical Pot Patient's Bias Suit Against Penske Can Proceed

    A Pennsylvania federal judge has refused to dismiss a discrimination case brought by a medical marijuana patient alleging a unit of Penske Corp. unlawfully rescinded his job offer.

  • May 22, 2025

    As Trump Wields FCA, Whistleblowers May See 'Dollar Signs'

    The Trump administration's plan to use the False Claims Act to target diversity programs and alleged civil rights fraud steers a well-worn statute into uncharted territory, and could spur significant whistleblower activity amid high-profile battles with Harvard University, BigLaw firms and other institutions, experts told Law360.

  • May 22, 2025

    Goodwin Procter Gave EEOC Data On Applicants' Race, Pay

    Goodwin Procter LLP turned over a trove of demographic and employment data on thousands of applicants for its fellowships, summer associate programs and full-time positions in response to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's March inquiry into its diversity programs.

  • May 22, 2025

    Tire Co., EEOC Resolve Guatemalan Harassment Suit

    A Massachusetts scrap tire facility agreed to pay $250,000 to settle a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lawsuit claiming the company's owner used derogatory language toward Guatemalan workers and threatened them with deportation, according to a Thursday filing in federal court.

  • May 22, 2025

    EEOC Says Car Dealer Denied Vet Service Dog To Aid PTSD

    A U.S. Navy veteran was forced to quit his job at a Maryland car dealership because it refused to let him bring a service dog to work to help manage panic attacks induced by service-related PTSD, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said in a new suit.

  • May 22, 2025

    Mich. Judge Says Red Cross Can Depose Ex-Nurse's Husband

    A Michigan federal judge on Thursday clarified that he intended to allow the American Red Cross to depose the husband of a nurse who alleges she was wrongfully denied a religious exemption from the organization's COVID-19 vaccine mandate, putting to rest a bout between the parties about the order's interpretation. 

  • May 22, 2025

    Ex-Troutman Atty Drops Retaliation Suit Against Major Lindsey

    An associate attorney who sued Major Lindsey & Africa LLC alleging the legal recruiter refused to work with her due to her underlying race discrimination suit against Troutman Pepper permanently dropped her suit Thursday.

  • May 22, 2025

    Calif. County Gets Vax Exemption Bias Class Disbanded

    A California federal judge dissolved a class of county workers who alleged their requests for religious exemptions from a COVID-19 vaccine mandate were handled differently from other employees' medical exemption bids, finding the group was not as similar as she had previously believed.

  • May 22, 2025

    Katz Banks Hires Former Gov't Atty For Worker Advocacy

    A former attorney at the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is now senior counsel at Katz Banks Kumin LLP in Washington, D.C., the firm announced, saying she will use her experience to advocate for federal workers navigating changes brought on by the Trump administration.

  • May 22, 2025

    2nd Circ. Won't Revive Court Interpreters' Pay Bias Suit

    The Second Circuit on Thursday declined to reinstate a lawsuit from New York court interpreters alleging they are paid less than their federal counterparts because they are foreign born, saying the workers failed to show the state's court system acted with discriminatory intent.

  • May 22, 2025

    Quest Diagnostics' $4M Rest Break Settlement Gets Initial OK

    A California federal judge granted preliminary approval to a $3.95 million settlement to a wage and hour class action against Quest Diagnostics Clinical Laboratories Inc., saying the deal adequately resolves allegations that the company violated the rest-break provision of the state's Labor Code.

  • May 22, 2025

    6th Circ. Affirms Toss Of ADA Suit Over Oxygen Tank Request

    The Sixth Circuit backed the dismissal of a former funeral home worker's disability bias suit alleging her shifts were cut because she asked for space to store her oxygen tank, ruling the lower court rightly found that her retaliation claim lacked evidence of prejudice.

  • May 22, 2025

    Ex-Prosecutor Says Filing Error Wrongly Sank FMLA Claims

    A filing error should not spell demise for a former Virginia city prosecutor's Family and Medical Leave Act claims against the city, his counsel told a federal court, saying the claims should be reinstated because they were never intended to be conceded.

  • May 22, 2025

    Mass. Justices Say Worker's Raise Doesn't Doom Bias Claim

    Massachusetts' top court on Thursday found that an employer may still face a discrimination claim for an alleged retaliatory action for union activity, even if the move left the worker with a pay bump.

  • May 21, 2025

    Littler, Tech Exec Settle Suit Over Firm's 'Unlawful' Advice

    Littler Mendelson PC has settled a tech executive's lawsuit claiming she was suspended and, eventually, fired after the company followed the "unlawful" advice of Littler attorneys, according to a dismissal order issued Tuesday in New York federal court.

  • May 21, 2025

    False Claims Act Gives Trump 'Sledgehammer' To Battle DEI

    The U.S. Department of Justice's vow to invoke the False Claims Act to police alleged civil rights violations tees up a powerful weapon for the Trump administration to wield against contractors and federal grantees with diversity, equity and inclusion programs it claims are discriminatory, experts say.

Expert Analysis

  • Rethinking 'No Comment' For Clients Facing Public Crises

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    “No comment” is no longer a cost-free or even a viable public communications strategy for companies in crisis, and counsel must tailor their guidance based on a variety of competing factors to help clients emerge successfully, says Robert Bowers at Moore & Van Allen.

  • 10 Issues To Watch In Aerospace And Defense Contracting

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    This year, in addition to evergreen developments driven by national security priorities, disruptive new technologies and competition with rival powers, federal contractors will see significant disruptions driven by the new administration’s efforts to reduce government spending, regulation and the size of the federal workforce, say attorneys at Thompson Hine.

  • Undoing An American Ideal Of Fairness

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    President Donald Trump’s orders attacking birthright citizenship, civil rights education, and diversity, equity and inclusion programs threaten hard-won constitutional civil rights protections and decades of efforts to undo bias in the law — undermining what Chief Justice Earl Warren called "our American ideal of fairness," says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • Employer Tips For Wise Use Of Workers' Biometrics And Tech

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    Employers that collect employee biometric data and operate bring-your-own-device policies, which respectively offer better corporate security and more flexibility for workers, should prioritize certain best practices to protect the privacy and rights of employees and safeguard sensitive internal information, says Douglas Yang at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Unprecedented Firings And The EEOC's Shifting Agenda

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    While President Donald Trump's unprecedented firing of Democratic Equal Employment Opportunity Commission members put an end to the party's voting majority, the move raises legal issues, as well as considerations related to the EEOC's lack of a quorum and shifting regulatory priorities, says Ally Coll at the Purple Method.

  • What Trump Admin's Anti-DEI Push Means For FCA Claims

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    President Donald Trump's recent rescission of a 60-year-old executive order imposing nondiscrimination requirements on certain federal contractors has far-reaching implications, including potential False Claims Act liability for contractors and grant recipients who fail to comply, though it may be a challenge for the government to successfully establish liability, say attorneys at Bass Berry.

  • It Starts With Training: Anti-Harassment After 'It Ends With Us'

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    Actress Blake Lively's recent sexual harassment and retaliation allegations against her "It Ends With Us" co-star, director and producer, Justin Baldoni, should remind employers of their legal obligations to implement trainings, policies and other measures to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace, say attorneys at Morrison Cohen.

  • What Day 1 Bondi Memos Mean For Corporate Compliance

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    After Attorney General Pam Bondi’s flurry of memos last week declaring new enforcement priorities on issues ranging from foreign bribery to diversity initiatives, companies must base their compliance programs on an understanding of their own core values and principles, says Hui Chen at CDE Advisors.

  • 5 Things For Private Employers To Do After Trump's DEI Order

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    Following President Donald Trump's recent executive order pushing the private sector to narrow, and even end, diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, employers should ensure DEI efforts align with their organization's mission and goals, are legally compliant, and are effectively communicated to stakeholders, say attorneys at Mintz.

  • Zuckerberg's Remarks Pose Legal Risk For Meta Amid Layoffs

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    Within days of announcing that Meta Platforms will cut 5% of its lowest-performing employees, Mark Zuckerberg remarked that corporations are becoming "culturally neutered" and need to bring back "masculine energy," exposing the company to potential claims under California employment law, says Andi Mazingo at Lumen Law Center.

  • Preparing For A Possible End To The Subminimum Wage

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    The U.S. Department of Labor's proposed rule to end the subminimum wage for employees with disabilities may significantly affect the community-based rehabilitation and training programs that employ these workers, so certified programs should be especially vigilant about compliance during this period of evaluation and scrutiny, say attorneys at Jackson Lewis.

  • Water Cooler Talk: 'Harry Potter' Reveals Magic Of Feedback

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    Troutman Pepper's Tracey Diamond and Emily Schifter chat with Wicker Park Group partner Tara Weintritt about various feedback methods used by "Harry Potter" characters — from Snape's sharp and cutting remarks to Dumbledore's lack of specificity and Hermione's poor delivery — and explore how clear, consistent and actionable feedback can transform workplaces.

  • What To Expect From Trump's Deputy Labor Secretary Pick

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    President Donald Trump's nominee for deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Labor, Keith Sonderling, has a track record of prioritizing clear guidance on both traditional and cutting-edge issues, which can provide insight into what employers can expect from his leadership, say attorneys at Littler.