Discrimination

  • May 20, 2025

    Detroit Tigers, Former VP Spar Over Age, Race Bias Claims

    The Detroit Tigers said a former vice president was let go as part of a COVID-19 pandemic workforce reduction while the ex-executive said the pandemic was a smokescreen for firing an older Black woman, as each argued the other side should not get an early win in the lawsuit. 

  • May 20, 2025

    9th Circ. Revives Ex-Army Corps Boat Operator's Bias Suit

    The Ninth Circuit revived a lawsuit claiming the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers refused to rehire a boat operator because he was in his 50s and has diabetes, saying a trial court held the civilian worker's allegations to an incorrectly high standard.

  • May 20, 2025

    Doctor's Disability Bias Claim Too Late, Mass. Court Says

    A former Brigham and Women's Hospital anesthesiologist and Harvard Medical School faculty member is time-barred from pursuing disability bias claims for actions by the hospital that he was aware of as early as 2006, an intermediate Massachusetts appellate court has concluded.

  • May 20, 2025

    EEOC Annual Worker Data Bid Opens With Diversity Warning

    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's annual workplace demographic data collection window opened Tuesday with a warning from the EEOC's acting chair that employers can't act on protected characteristics like race and sex to try to enhance diversity.

  • May 19, 2025

    Former Kite Pharma Exec Alleges Gender Bias, Retaliation

    Gilead Sciences and its subsidiary Kite Pharma have been hit with a suit in California state court by a former company executive alleging she was underpaid compared to her male counterparts and fired while out on medical leave after she raised concerns about equal pay. 

  • May 19, 2025

    11th Circ. Says Logistics Worker's FMLA Award Lacks Support

    The Eleventh Circuit partially overturned a $1.2 million award Monday in favor of a former supervisor who claimed a logistics company prevented him from taking Family and Medical Leave Act leave after he had back surgery, saying he hadn't shown the alleged interference caused him to lose any money.

  • May 19, 2025

    FCC's Carr Claims Victory Versus DEI In Verizon-Frontier OK

    Verizon took a leap toward closing its $20 billion bid for Frontier Communications by gaining the Federal Communications Commission's approval after ditching its diversity, equity and inclusion programs at the behest of FCC Chair Brendan Carr.

  • May 19, 2025

    5th Circ. Tosses FCC Workplace Diversity Reporting Rule

    The Fifth Circuit on Monday threw out a Federal Communications Commission rule that required TV and radio broadcasters to disclose employment diversity data to the FCC.

  • May 19, 2025

    7th Circ. Won't Reopen Male Ex-School Director's Bias Suit

    The Seventh Circuit refused to upend a private school's win over a lawsuit alleging it unlawfully terminated an administrator and replaced him with a woman, saying he couldn't overcome the school's explanation that he was let go for breaching his boss's trust.

  • May 19, 2025

    Ex-CTA Worker Can Take Vaccine Bias Claim To Trial

    An ex-Chicago Transit Authority employee fired after refusing COVID-19 vaccination can take his religious discrimination claim to a jury this summer after an Illinois federal judge grilled the agency Monday on its assertion that the plaintiff didn't seek an exemption for sincerely held religious beliefs and rejected its argument that he was "cherry-picking" Catholic doctrine.

  • May 19, 2025

    DOJ To Probe Whether Chicago's Hiring Is Too Pro-Black

    The head of the U.S. Department of Justice' civil rights arm said Monday she greenlighted an investigation into whether Chicago is unlawfully favoring Black workers in hiring, a day after the city's Democratic mayor touted the number of Black staffers in his administration.

  • May 19, 2025

    Ex-CEO Accuses Omnicom Of Gender, Age Bias In Pay Suit

    Omnicom paid the CEO of one of its agencies less than her male counterparts and fired her under the pretext of a restructuring when she complained, the former executive told a Texas federal court, alleging the marketing and communications firm discriminated against her because she's a woman in her 60s.

  • May 19, 2025

    Subway Supervisor Sexually Assaulted Worker, EEOC Says

    A young employee of a Subway franchise was sexually harassed and eventually assaulted by an older supervisor, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission claimed in a new lawsuit filed in Utah federal court, faulting the franchisee for failing to enact proper safeguards to halt abuse.

  • May 19, 2025

    Atty Says Texas Firm Fired Her For Taking Protected Leave

    A former associate at a prominent Texas personal injury firm who claims she was fired after she took medical leave for a disabling eye condition and bereavement leave upon her mother's death has brought a disability discrimination suit against the firm and associated entities in federal court in Houston.

  • May 19, 2025

    Ex-Staffer Fights NJ Law Firm Blume Forte's Arbitration Bid

    A former staff member who is suing personal injury law firm Blume Forte Fried Zerres & Molinari PC, alleging disability discrimination, is disputing an assertion that she signed a valid arbitration agreement with the firm, arguing that any such agreement is unenforceable in New Jersey state court.

  • May 19, 2025

    Hanson Bridgett Expands To Fresno With Ex-Littler Leader

    California firm Hanson Bridgett LLP has brought on a former office managing shareholder for employment firm Littler Mendelson PC — Hanson Bridgett's first attorney in Fresno, where it plans to open its seventh office this year.

  • May 19, 2025

    That's What The Money Is For: Pay Lessons From 'Mad Men'

    "Mad Men," the dramatic AMC television series about a 1960s-era advertising agency, offers lessons on a host of employment law issues for today's workforce, such as how to manage pay for superstar employees who go on extended leave and what not to do when it comes to paying men and women equally. Here, to accompany the 10th anniversary this month of the show's final episode, Law360 conducts a compliance audit of the storied Sterling Cooper.

  • May 19, 2025

    5th Circ. Affirms Masculinity Gibe Can't Sustain Gay Bias Suit

    The Fifth Circuit backed a hospice company's win over a former nurse who said a supervisor failed to take action when a colleague insulted him for being gay, saying the coworker's offensive comment wasn't enough to sustain a bias case.

  • May 19, 2025

    Ex-Litigator Settles Disability Bias Suit Against Wilson Elser

    A former Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP litigator on Monday agreed to permanently drop his federal disability bias suit against the firm, after the sides came to a confidential resolution.

  • May 19, 2025

    Law Students Say 'Thousands' At Risk From EEOC Data Probe

    Three law students who sued last month to challenge the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's requests for law firms' diversity data are looking to expand their case to represent a class of thousands of attorneys whose personal information might be swept up by the agency.

  • May 19, 2025

    'Stark' Pay Data May Revive NY Court Interpreters' Bias Suit

    Second Circuit judges Monday signaled interest in reviving a pay discrimination case brought by interpreters working for the New York State Unified Court System, as one jurist remarked on "stark" data showing they're "underpaid" and voiced curiosity about what discovery might reveal.

  • May 19, 2025

    Justices Won't Hear White Ga. Coach's Bias Suit

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to review an Eleventh Circuit decision that ended a white Georgia high school football coach's claims that Black school board members declined to renew his contract on account of his race.

  • May 16, 2025

    Workday Hiring Bias Suit Wins Collective Status

    A California federal judge on Friday agreed to certify a collective action of job applicants over 40 who claim they were illegally steered away from jobs by a Workday hiring tool, finding that whether Workday discriminated on the basis of age is a question that "cuts across" the collective.

  • May 16, 2025

    5th Circ. Revives ADA Suit Over 6-Month Wait For Service Dog

    The Fifth Circuit on Friday breathed new life into a U.S. Army veteran's lawsuit claiming a Texas school district slow-walked her request for a service dog at work, ruling her allegations were detailed enough to suggest the delay may have violated federal disability law.

  • May 16, 2025

    NY Forecast: 2nd Circ. Hears Court Interpreters Bias Case

    This week, the Second Circuit will consider an appeal of a federal judge's decision dismissing a discrimination lawsuit brought by New York court interpreters who claim they are systematically paid less than a federal benchmark because they are foreign born.  Here, Law360 looks at this and other cases on the docket in New York.

Expert Analysis

  • Vaccine Accommodation Suits Show Risk Of Blanket Policies

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    A recent federal class action alleging Tyson Foods inappropriately applied a one-size-fits-all response to Arkansas employees seeking religious COVID-19 vaccine exemptions, with similar suits going back to 2022, should remind employers to individually consider every worker request for a religious accommodation, say Christopher Pardo and Elizabeth Sherwood at Hunton.

  • Workplace Challenges Amid Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

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    Recent tension over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has caused challenges in the employment sphere, sparking the question of whether employees can be legally disciplined for speaking out on issues related to the conflict, which depends on various circumstances, says Alok Nadig at Sanford Heisler.

  • Water Cooler Talk: Insights On Noncompetes From 'The Office'

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    Troutman Pepper’s Tracey Diamond, Evan Gibbs, Constance Brewster and Jim Earle compare scenarios from “The Office” to the complex world of noncompetes and associated tax issues, as employers are becoming increasingly hesitant to look to noncompete provisions amid a potential federal ban.

  • High Court's Job Bias Questions May Predict Title VII Ruling

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    Employers may be able to predict — and prepare for — important changes to workplace discrimination laws by examining the questions the U.S. Supreme Court asked during oral arguments for Muldrow v. St. Louis, where several justices seemed to favor a low threshold for Title VII suits, says Wendy LaManque at Pryor Cashman.

  • 2 Cases Highlight NJ Cannabis Employment Law Uncertainties

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    More than two years after its enactment, the employee protections and employer obligations in New Jersey's Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance and Marketplace Modernization Act remain unsettled, and two recent lawsuits draw attention to the law's enforceability and its intersection with federal law, say Ruth Rauls at Saul Ewing and David White at Seton Hall.

  • 3 Compliance Reminders For Calif. Employers In 2024

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    As we enter into the new year, several recent updates to California employment law — including minimum wage and sick leave requirements — necessitate immediate compliance actions for employers, says Daniel Pyne at Hopkins & Carley.

  • Sex Harassment Arbitration Exemption: Devil Is In The Date

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    A Federal Arbitration Act amendment that exempts workplace sexual harassment claims from arbitration is muddled in ongoing confusion about its chronological reach — and as many such cases begin to run up against applicable statutes of limitations, the clock is ticking for claimants to bring their actions in court, says Abe Melamed at Signature Resolution.

  • Top 10 Employer Resolutions For 2024

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    From technological leaps to sea changes in labor policy to literal sea changes, 2024 provides opportunities for employers to face big-picture questions that will shape their business for years to come, say Allegra Lawrence-Hardy and Lisa Haldar at Lawrence & Bundy.

  • Lessons Learned From 2023's Top FMLA Decisions

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    This year’s most significant Family and Medical Leave Act decisions offer lessons on the act's technical requirements, including the definition of serious health condition, compliance with notice requirements and whether it is permissible to give an employee substantial extra work upon their return from leave, says Linda Dwoskin at Dechert.

  • Artificial Intelligence Is In Need Of Regulation — But How?

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    Since most of the artificial intelligence-related laws in 2023 were part of more extensive consumer privacy law, the U.S. still has a lot of work to do to build consensus on how to oversee AI, and even who should do the regulating, before moving forward on specific and reasonable guidelines as AI's capabilities grow, say Nick Toufexis and Paul Saputo at Saputo Toufexis.

  • Lessons Learned From 2023's Top ADA Decisions

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    This year saw the courts delving into the complexities of employee accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act in the post-pandemic workplace, going beyond bright-line rules with fact-intensive inquiries that are likely to create uncertainty for employers, says Linda Dwoskin at Dechert.

  • What's Ahead For Immigrant Employee Rights Enforcement

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    The U.S. Department of Justice’s increased enforcement related to immigration-based employment discrimination is coupled with pending constitutional challenges to administrative tribunals, suggesting employers should leverage those headwinds when facing investigations or class action-style litigation, say attorneys at Jones Day.

  • Top 10 Whistleblowing And Retaliation Events Of 2023

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and federal and state courts made 2023 another groundbreaking year for whistleblower litigation and retaliation developments, including the SEC’s massive whistleblower awards, which are likely to continue into 2024 and further incentivize individuals to submit tips, say attorneys at Proskauer.