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Discrimination

  • August 29, 2025

    Logistics Cos. Can't Escape Worker Visa Misuse Class Action

    Two logistics companies have failed to escape a proposed class action accusing them of misusing a professional worker visa program to lure workers from Mexico, with a Georgia federal judge trimming out some discrimination and fair labor claims, but allowing several others to proceed.

  • August 29, 2025

    EEOC, Sam's Club Strike $60K Deal In ADA Suit

    The operators of warehouse club retail store Sam's Club will pay $60,000 to end a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit alleging a worker was refused accommodations and ultimately fired after attempting to return to work following an automobile accident.

  • August 29, 2025

    Amazon Workers Get Class Nod In Military Leave Bias Suit

    A New York federal judge handed class certification to a group of workers alleging Amazon did not provide equal leave benefits to service members compared to those who took other forms of leave such as jury duty, although he found the class representative couldn't lead the case.

  • August 29, 2025

    US Education Dept. Finds Denver Schools Flouted Title IX

    The first Title IX investigation undertaken by the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights since President Donald Trump returned to office found Denver Public Schools violated Title IX by converting two bathrooms at a local high school to multi-stall, all-gender bathrooms, according to a Thursday news release from the OCR.

  • August 29, 2025

    Employment Lawyers' Weekly DEI Cheat Sheet

    The city of Seattle has attempted to block the Trump administration from enforcing executive orders that condition federal grants partly on recipients curtailing diversity, equity and inclusion programs, and the state of Texas was hit with a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a law curbing inclusivity in public schools. Here, Law360 looks at notable DEI-related legal developments from the past week.

  • August 29, 2025

    GardaWorld Can't Avoid Tobacco, Vaccine Health Fee Suit

    A North Carolina federal judge trimmed — but refused to toss — a proposed class action challenging a security company's health plan surcharges to employees who refused COVID-19 vaccinations and who use tobacco, opening discovery on claims that the fees violated nondiscrimination provisions in federal benefits law.

  • August 29, 2025

    5th Circ. Upholds Dallas Win In Pay, Race Bias Case

    A former management assistant for the city of Dallas failed to demonstrate that she was paid less than a colleague because of her race and her retaliation and discrimination claims also could not stand, the Fifth Circuit ruled Friday.

  • August 29, 2025

    NY Forecast: 2nd Circ. Hears Northwell COVID Vaccine Suit

    This week, the Second Circuit will consider whether to revive a suit brought by former healthcare workers who claimed they were discriminated against on the basis of their religion when they were fired for refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine.

  • August 29, 2025

    UPenn Prof Suspended For Racist Remarks Loses Bias Claim

    University of Pennsylvania law professor Amy Wax lost her federal discrimination claims against the school for suspending her over disparaging comments she made about minorities, with a judge finding that she was disciplined for racist speech, not because of her own race.

  • August 29, 2025

    Ill. Jury Sides With Ex-CTA Worker In Vax Bias Lawsuit

    An Illinois federal jury on Friday awarded a former Chicago Transit Authority employee $425,000 in damages, finding the transit agency liable on his religious discrimination claim after he was terminated following his refusal to take the COVID-19 vaccine and denied an exemption to the agency's vaccine requirement.

  • August 29, 2025

    Calif. Forecast: NLRB Fights Co. With Union-Busting Claims

    In the coming week, attorneys should watch for arguments in a National Labor Relations Board case against an environmental and engineering consultant. Here's a look at that case and other labor and employment matters on deck in California.

  • August 29, 2025

    Single Slur Not Enough For Retaliation Suit, Judge Says

    A Michigan federal judge stood by her dismissal of an Arab American worker's suit claiming a car dealership fired him for protesting a supervisor's racist language while following up on her original ruling to say that opposition to the single use of a slur isn't enough to establish a retaliation case.

  • August 29, 2025

    Wage And Hour Laws To Look Out For This Fall

    Workers in Maine will get extra wages if their employer cancels or cuts back their shift last minute, and employers in Cleveland will have to abide by new salary history and pay transparency requirements. Here, Law360 looks at these and other wage and hour and equal pay laws coming in the fall.

  • August 28, 2025

    10th Circ. Told Okla. 'Race Theory' Law Must Go

    The Tenth Circuit is being told it must ensure academic freedom for the students of Oklahoma, whose constitutional rights and "the very nature of the classroom as a place that nurtures inquiry and discussion" are being undermined by a state law restricting what they can be taught.

  • August 28, 2025

    Ex-Katten Partner's $67M Age Bias Suit Stayed For Arbitration

    A Manhattan federal judge stayed a $67 million discrimination lawsuit brought by a former Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP partner alleging the firm pushed him out of the aircraft-finance practice group, pressured him to resign and then fired him because of his age, saying there is an arbitration agreement at play.

  • August 28, 2025

    Car Dealership Settles EEOC Hiring Bias Suit For $275K

    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced Thursday that it struck a $275,000 deal with a Missouri car dealership to end a gender bias suit claiming the business only hired women for office jobs and men for sales jobs.

  • August 28, 2025

    Religion Didn't Drive Ex-CTA Worker's Vax Refusal, Jury Hears

    A former Chicago Transit Authority electrician hasn't met his burden of proving religious discrimination was behind his termination when he refused to be vaccinated against COVID-19, and his refusal was based on personal preference and health and safety concerns about the jab, an Illinois federal jury heard Thursday.

  • August 28, 2025

    White Workers Say Shell Reorganization Was Discriminatory

    Shell was hit with a federal lawsuit this week accusing it of implementing a "pretextual departmental reorganization" that discriminated against several white employees.

  • August 28, 2025

    Ex-State Farm VP Sues Activists Over Secretly Recording Date

    A former State Farm executive has sued political activist James O'Keefe and a woman who lied about her intentions to date him, claiming they violated Illinois' eavesdropping statute by secretly recording his comments about State Farm's diversity efforts and rate hikes and later posting misleading videos of him, costing him his job.

  • August 28, 2025

    8th Circ. Brings Back EEOC Harassment Suit Against BNSF

    The Eighth Circuit on Thursday revived a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lawsuit accusing BNSF Railway Co. of failing to adequately safeguard women at a Nebraska rail yard from rampant harassment, saying the legal standard applied by a trial court was too rigid.

  • August 28, 2025

    School Union Inks $110K Deal To End EEOC Race Bias Suit

    A school district labor union has agreed to pay $110,000 to resolve a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit claiming it discriminated against a Black custodian by challenging his promotion, according to a filing Thursday in Illinois federal court.

  • August 28, 2025

    Ex-Law Firm Worker Gets More Time To Give Info In Bias Suit

    A New Jersey state judge gave the attorney for a woman suing a Garden State law firm in a workplace discrimination case additional time to respond to overdue discovery requests after he failed to reply for more than seven months.

  • August 28, 2025

    EEOC Yanks Guide On Workforce Demographic Data

    A recently published U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission fact sheet reminding federal employers to adhere to longstanding employee demographic reporting requirements was taken down after an agency source said it was released prematurely while still in draft form.

  • August 28, 2025

    4th Circ. Says Jury Should Hear Ex-Professor's Sex Bias Suit

    The Fourth Circuit revived an ex-Morgan State University professor's suit claiming she was denied multiple promotions and paid less than her male colleagues, finding the lower court overlooked key evidence that warrants a trial, such as claims that a department chair called her a "reject lesbian."

  • August 27, 2025

    Seattle Asks Court To Bar Feds From Yanking Grants Over DEI

    The city of Seattle has urged a federal court to block the Trump administration from enforcing two executive orders that condition federal grants on recipients abandoning the promotion of diversity, equity and inclusion or "gender ideology," saying the conditions are unconstitutional and jeopardize several of the city's critical public services.

Expert Analysis

  • Trump's 1st 100 Days Show That Employers Must Stay Nimble

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    Despite the aggressive pace of the Trump administration, employers must stay abreast of developments, including changes in equal employment opportunity law, while balancing state law considerations where employment regulations are at odds with the evolving federal laws, says Susan Sholinsky at Epstein Becker.

  • Water Cooler Talk: Classification Lessons From 'Love Is Blind'

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    The National Labor Relations Board's recent complaint alleging that cast members of the Netflix reality series "Love Is Blind" were misclassified as nonemployee participants and deprived of protections under the National Labor Relations Act offers insight for employers about how to structure independent contractor relationships, say Tracey Diamond and Emily Schifter at Troutman Pepper.

  • Employer Tips For Navigating Cultural Flashpoints Litigation

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    A New York federal court's recent refusal to fully dismiss claims that Cooper Union failed to address antisemitism underscores why employment litigation that involves polarizing political, social or cultural divides requires distinct defense strategies to minimize risk of an adverse outcome and of negative impacts on the employer's reputation, say attorneys at Seyfarth Shaw.

  • How To Address FCA Risk After 4th Circ. Ruling On DEI Orders

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    Following the Fourth Circuit's ruling in National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education v. Trump, which freed the administration to enforce executive orders targeting diversity, equity and inclusion programs, government contractors should take stock of potentially unlawful DEI programs, given their heightened risk under the False Claims Act, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Tracking FTC Labor Task Force's Focus On Worker Protection

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    The Federal Trade Commission recently directed its bureaus to form a joint labor task force, shifting the agency's focus toward protecting consumers in their role as workers, but case selection and resource allocation will ultimately reveal how significant labor markets will be in the FTC's agenda, say attorneys at Venable.

  • 2nd Circ. Ruling May Aid Consistent Interpretation Of ADA

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    In Tudor v. Whitehall Central School District, the Second Circuit joined the majority of circuits by holding that an employee's ability to perform their job without an accommodation does not disqualify them from receiving one, marking a notable step toward uniform application of the Americans with Disabilities Act nationwide, says Michelle Grant at Wilson Elser.

  • 6 Criteria Can Help Assess Executive Branch Actions

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    With new executive policy changes announced seemingly every day, several questions can help courts, policymakers and businesses determine whether such actions are proper, effective and in keeping with our democratic norms, say Marc Levin and Khalil Cumberbatch at the Council on Criminal Justice.

  • 5 Key Issues For Multinational Cos. Mulling Return To Office

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    As companies increasingly revisit return-to-office mandates, multinational employers may face challenges in enforcing uniform RTO practices globally, but several key considerations and practical solutions can help avoid roadblocks, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • End May Be In Sight For Small Biz Set-Aside Programs

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    A Jan. 21 executive order largely disarming the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, along with recent court rulings, suggests that the administration may soon attempt to eliminate set-asides intended to level the award playing field for small business contractors that qualify under socioeconomic programs, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • 6 Ways The Dole Act Alters USERRA Employment Protections

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    The recently passed Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act continues a long-standing trend of periodically increasing the scope of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, expanding civilian employment rights for service members and veterans with some of the most significant changes yet, say attorneys at Littler.

  • TikTok Bias Suit Ruling Reflects New Landscape Under EFAA

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    In Puris v. Tiktok, a New York federal court found an arbitration agreement unenforceable in a former executive's bias suit, underscoring an evolving trend of broad, but inconsistent, interpretation of the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act, say attorneys at Williams & Connolly.

  • Water Cooler Talk: Takeaways From 'It Ends With Us' Suits

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    Troutman’s Tracey Diamond and Emily Schifter discuss how the lawsuits filed by “It Ends With Us” stars Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni hold major lessons about workplace harassment, retaliation and employee digital media use.

  • Running A Compliant DEI Program After EEOC, DOJ Guidance

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    Following recent guidance from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice that operationalized the Trump administration's focus on ending so-called illegal DEI, employers don't need to eliminate DEI programs, but they must ensure that protected characteristics are not considered in employment decisions, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.