Discrimination

  • July 28, 2025

    Rising Star: Shegerian & Associates' John David

    John David of Shegerian & Associates helped a former bank branch manager secure a $14 million jury verdict in her sex discrimination lawsuit and led a consultant to victory in his disability bias case, earning him a spot among the employment law practitioners under age 40 honored by Law360 as Rising Stars.

  • July 28, 2025

    Security Co., EEOC End Sex Bias Suit Over Job Denial

    A Houston-based hospital security contractor has agreed to pay $35,000 and implement anti-discrimination training to resolve a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit accusing the company of turning away a woman seeking a job because of her sex.

  • July 28, 2025

    6th Circ. Revives Fired State Farm Worker's Retaliation Suit

    The Sixth Circuit reinstated a former State Farm worker's retaliation suit claiming she was fired for helping a co-worker pursue a disability bias complaint, ruling that she showed she may have been targeted for timekeeping violations out of revenge for her advocacy.

  • July 28, 2025

    Biotech GC Says She Was Ousted Amid 'Systemic' Bias

    A former general counsel at Massachusetts life sciences firm Repligen has filed a lawsuit in state court claiming that a pervasive culture of gender bias led to her and other women being treated differently and paid less.

  • July 25, 2025

    4th Circ. Revives Kraft Heinz Suit Over Safety Complaints

    The Fourth Circuit on Friday overturned a win for Kraft Heinz Inc. in a suit by a former worker at a meatpacking plant who alleged that he'd been fired for reporting safety issues, saying the district court wrongly concluded that a separate disciplinary investigation was the sole reason he was terminated.

  • July 25, 2025

    EEOC Says $21M Columbia Bias Deal Holds 'Historic' Value

    Columbia University's agreement to pay $21 million to quell allegations that Jewish employees endured harassment marks the biggest settlement the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has ever reached stemming from alleged antisemitism, the EEOC said Friday.

  • July 25, 2025

    8th Circ. Revives Union Pacific Worker's ADA Suit

    The Eighth Circuit on Friday breathed new life into a disability bias lawsuit against Union Pacific, finding that a carman who suffered brain hemorrhaging in an off-duty accident may have a case that the railroad discriminated against him based on theoretical future medical episodes.

  • July 25, 2025

    NY Forecast: Judge To Weigh Dismissal Of Nurses' OT Suit

    This week, a federal magistrate judge will consider a nursing home company's attempt to toss a proposed collective action brought by nurses who claim they were not paid overtime required by federal law, and a competing motion by the nurses to conditionally certify the collective action. Here, Law360 looks at this and other cases on the docket in New York.

  • July 25, 2025

    Jury Awards $5M To Utility Inspector Fired Over Work Injuries

    A former field inspector for a Washington utility was awarded $5 million in emotional damages after a federal jury found his termination over his medical restrictions contravened state and federal prohibitions on disability discrimination.

  • July 25, 2025

    Los Angeles Seeks Early Win In Military Leave Bias Suit

    The city of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Police Department urged a California federal court Friday to grant them an early win in a proposed class action alleging the city didn't grant equal sick and vacation time to service members and wouldn't promote them because of their service obligations.

  • July 25, 2025

    Worker's Deposition Sinks Religious, Race Bias Suit Over Vax

    A North Carolina federal court tossed a Black worker's religious and race bias suit claiming she was fired by a hygiene products company for opposing its COVID-19 vaccine, ruling her suit fell apart when she admitted in a deposition that refusing the vaccine was a personal choice.

  • July 25, 2025

    Nordstrom Tobacco Health Fee Violates ERISA, Ex-Staff Say

    Three ex-workers for Nordstrom Inc. hit the retailer with a proposed class action in Washington federal court, alleging a $40-a-month surcharge on the health plans of tobacco-using employees was discriminatory in violation of federal benefits law.

  • July 25, 2025

    Calif. Forecast: Meta Challenges Hiring Bias Class Claims

    In the coming week, attorneys should keep an eye out for arguments on Facebook owner Meta's challenge to the scope of proposed classes in a citizenship discrimination suit. Here's a look at that case and other labor and employment matters coming up in California.

  • July 25, 2025

    1st Circ. Backs Ex-Pharma Director's $24M Disability Bias Win

    The First Circuit declined to scrap a $24 million verdict for a former lab director of a Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. subsidiary who claimed she was fired for seeking alternative public speaking arrangements due to her anxiety, ruling the evidence presented supported the jury's verdict.

  • July 25, 2025

    Employment Lawyers' Weekly DEI Cheat Sheet

    President Donald Trump called for restricting diversity, equity and inclusion concepts in the government's artificial intelligence tools, a prominent anti-DEI group said Cracker Barrel gives short shrift to white employees, and Skydance Media's commitment to cut DEI programs at Paramount helped clinch government approval for the two companies' $8 billion merger. Here, Law360 looks at notable DEI-related legal developments from the past week.

  • July 24, 2025

    FCC Signs Off On Skydance's $8B Acquisition Of Paramount

    The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday gave the green light to Skydance Media's controversial $8 billion acquisition of Paramount Global and its subsidiaries, including CBS' parent company, setting aside concerns that the deal will hurt competition.

  • July 24, 2025

    Law Firm Tells 2nd Circ. To Send Atty's Bias Suit To Arbitration

    Thompson Hine LLP urged the Second Circuit to require an ex-partner to arbitrate her claims that she faced a "toxic boys club" at the firm and was fired for complaining about it, arguing that a law barring mandatory arbitration for sexual harassment claims doesn't cover her case.

  • July 24, 2025

    Boeing Hit With Disability Bias Suit Over Bonus Exclusion

    Boeing employees on long-term disability leave missed out on a $12,000 bonus distributed after workers ratified a union contract in September, a new proposed class action alleges, claiming that limits on who qualified for the bonus violated Washington state discrimination law.

  • July 24, 2025

    Celebrity Cruises Can't Arbitrate Sexual Assault Case

    A former Celebrity Cruises Inc. employee will not have to argue her sexual assault case in an arbitration proceeding because a federal act requires such claims to be brought before a court, a Florida federal judge has ruled.

  • July 24, 2025

    Raytheon Must Face Ex-Worker's Trimmed Severance Fight

    A Massachusetts federal judge agreed to trim claims against Raytheon in a former employee's dispute over severance benefits, concluding claims of benefits retaliation failed to state a claim but that wrongful denial of benefits and fiduciary breach claims could proceed to discovery.

  • July 24, 2025

    Networking Co. Ends Fired President's HR Retaliation Suit

    Business Network International and its former U.S. president have agreed to end the ex-leader's suit claiming he was fired for complaining that a male executive made crude comments toward female colleagues, according to a North Carolina federal court filing.

  • July 24, 2025

    Jay-Z Defends Extortion Claims Against Buzbee, Other Attys

    Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter is urging an Alabama federal court to send toward trial his extortion lawsuit against attorney Tony Buzbee and his firm, a New York City lawyer and her firm, and a client of theirs who accused him of rape and then dropped her case.

  • July 24, 2025

    NC Fire Chief Never Finalized Race Bias Deal, Judge Rules

    A fire chief's race bias suit against the city of Charlotte, North Carolina, will go to trial more than three years after he believed the case to have settled, after a federal judge found the deal was never finalized and thus could not be enforced.

  • July 24, 2025

    Talent Exec Says Firm Took OnlyFans Clients, Ousted Her

    A Massachusetts talent management agency is facing a lawsuit in state court alleging it convinced a smaller competitor to bring her clients, including multiple OnlyFans performers, to the firm, then sidelined her and later broke an agreement to continue paying her commissions after she quit in frustration over her treatment.

  • July 24, 2025

    DOL Relaunches Employer Self-Audit FLSA Program

    The U.S. Department of Labor relaunched an employer self-audit program Thursday that supports employers that seek to resolve potential wage violations and avoid litigation — an initiative from the first Trump administration that was popular among employers.

Expert Analysis

  • Cos. Should Focus On State AI Laws Despite New DOL Site

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    Because a new U.S. Department of Labor-sponsored website about the disability discrimination risks of AI hiring tools mostly echoes old guidance, employers should focus on complying with the state and local AI workplace laws springing up where Congress and federal regulators have yet to act, say attorneys at Littler.

  • How The Tide Of EEOC Litigation Rolled Back In FY 2024

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    An analysis of the location, timing and underlying claims asserted in U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission-initiated cases during fiscal year 2024 shows that the commission saw a substantial decrease in litigation activity after a surge last year, but employers should not drop their guard, say Christopher DeGroff and Andrew Scroggins at Seyfarth.

  • The Key Changes In Revised FDIC Hiring Regulations

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    Attorneys at Ogletree break down the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s new rule, effective Oct. 1, that will ease restrictions on financial institutions hiring employees with criminal histories, amend the FDIC's treatment of minor offenses and clarify its stance on expunged or dismissed criminal records.

  • Employer Tips For PUMP Act Compliance As Law Turns 2

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    Enacted in December 2022, the Providing Urgent Maternal Protections for Nursing Mothers Act requires employers to provide reasonable break time and a private space for employees to express breast milk, but some companies may still be struggling with how to comply, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

  • What To Know About Ill. Employment Law Changes

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    Illinois employers should review their policies in light of a number of recent changes to state employment law, including amendments to the state’s Human Rights Act and modifications to the Day and Temporary Labor Services Act, say attorneys at Kilpatrick.

  • Mich. Whistleblower Ruling Expands Retaliation Remedies

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    The Michigan Supreme Court's recent Occupational Health and Safety Act decision in Stegall v. Resource Technology is important because it increases the potential exposure for defendants in public policy retaliation cases, providing plaintiffs with additional claims, say Aaron Burrell and Timothy Howlett at Dickinson Wright.

  • How States Are Approaching AI Workplace Discrimination

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    As legislators across the U.S. have begun addressing algorithmic discrimination in the workplace, attorneys at Reed Smith provide an overview of the status, applicability and provisions of 13 state and local bills.

  • The Risks Of Employee Political Discourse On Social Media

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    As election season enters its final stretch and employees increasingly engage in political speech on social media, employers should beware the liability risks and consider policies that negotiate the line between employees' rights and the limits on those rights, say Bradford Kelley and James McGehee at Littler.

  • 7th Circ. Rulings Offer Employee Vaccine Exemption Guidance

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    Dawn Solowey and Samantha Brooks at Seyfarth explain how two recent Seventh Circuit rulings in Passarella v. Aspirus and Bube v. Aspirus could affect litigation involving employee vaccine exemptions, and discuss employer best practices for handling accommodation requests that include both religious and secular concerns.

  • Employers Should Not Neglect Paid Military Leave Compliance

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    An August decision from the Ninth Circuit and the settlement of a long-running class action, both examining paid leave requirements under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, are part of a nationwide trend that should prompt employers to review their military leave policies to avoid potential litigation and reputational damage, says Bradford Kelley at Littler.

  • Old Employment Law Principles Can Answer New AI Concerns

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    Despite growing legal and regulatory concerns about how artificial intelligence tools may affect employment decisions and worker rights, companies should take comfort in knowing that familiar principles of employment law and established compliance regimes can still largely address these new twists on old questions, say attorneys at Foley & Lardner.

  • NYC Wage Info Bill Highlights Rise In Pay Transparency Laws

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    With New York City the latest to mull requiring companies to annually report employee wage data, national employers should consider adapting their compliance practices to comply with increasingly common pay transparency and disclosure obligations at state and local levels, says Kelly Cardin at Littler Mendelson.

  • Workday AI Bias Suit Suggests Hiring Lessons For Employers

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    As state laws and a federal agency increasingly focus on employment bias introduced by artificial intelligence systems, a California federal court's recent decision to allow a discrimination suit to proceed against Workday's AI-driven recruitment software, shows companies should promptly assess these tools' risks, say attorneys at Williams & Connolly.