Discrimination

  • July 31, 2025

    GAO Says VA Not Monitoring All Whistleblower Settlements

    The U.S. Government Accountability Office said in a report Thursday that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' lacks information on all settlement agreements reached in whistleblower retaliation cases involving VA employees due to lack of coordination between agencies. 

  • July 31, 2025

    Ex-FDIC Chair 'Livid' Over Toxic Workplace Claims, OIG Says

    An investigation by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s inspector general has found evidence that former Chair Martin Gruenberg and four unnamed ex-senior officials "personally engaged in some degree of inappropriate workplace conduct," in the latest report on the sexual harassment and toxic workplace scandal that erupted into public view nearly two years ago.

  • July 31, 2025

    Senate Confirms EEOC Leader Lucas For Fresh Term

    The U.S. Senate voted on party lines Thursday to confirm acting U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Chair Andrea Lucas for a fresh five-year term, clearing the way for her to continue recalibrating the agency's work to match President Donald Trump's agenda.

  • July 31, 2025

    NJ Town Knocks Out Worker's $1.6M Disability Bias Win

    A New Jersey appellate court scrapped a $1.6 million verdict Thursday for a township employee who said she was discriminated and retaliated against for taking leave to treat her anxiety, ruling the evidence presented at trial didn't justify the damages award.

  • July 31, 2025

    EEOC Says Hospital Wrong To Fire Worker Allergic To Vaccine

    A hospital violated federal disability law when it fired a worker in its insurance department who didn't get the COVID-19 vaccine because she was allergic to it, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleged in Illinois federal court Thursday.

  • July 31, 2025

    Seattle Sues Trump Administration Over Anti-DEI Grant Terms

    The city of Seattle sued the Trump administration in Washington federal court on Thursday, targeting two executive orders that require federal funding recipients to adopt the president's stances on diversity efforts and gender or risk losing money for a range of critical causes.

  • July 31, 2025

    6th Circ. Hints White Worker Lost Chance For Strong Bias Suit

    There are strong indicators that the University of Toledo sacked a white human resources employee to shield it from racism allegations, two Sixth Circuit judges agreed Thursday, but they said the evidence is of little use since no race discrimination claim was brought in the case before them.

  • July 31, 2025

    Drexel Ordered To Pay $546K In Fees, Costs In Equal Pay Case

    A former Drexel University professor found at trial to have been paid less than her male colleagues can recoup nearly $546,000 in attorney fees and costs, a Pennsylvania federal judge ruled Thursday, rejecting arguments her request was late, and was inappropriate because her lead counsel was her husband.

  • July 31, 2025

    Honeywell Ex-GC Claims Age Bias Led To Firing At 55

    A Honeywell International Inc. former vice president and general counsel accused the Charlotte-based conglomerate of age discrimination, telling a North Carolina federal court that she was fired for turning 55.

  • July 31, 2025

    ABA Seeks To Toss Race Bias Suit Over Scholarship Program

    The American Bar Association urged an Illinois federal court to throw out a lawsuit from The American Alliance for Equal Rights alleging the association's Legal Opportunity Scholarship Fund constitutes race-based discrimination, arguing that the claims are simply a "'desire to vindicate' a particular 'view of the law.'"

  • July 31, 2025

    Firefighter Says Military Service Cost Her Pay, Opportunities

    The Jersey City, New Jersey, fire department shorted a firefighter on pay and pension benefits while she was out on military leave and deprived her of opportunities upon her return to work, according to a lawsuit filed in state court.

  • July 31, 2025

    Dept. Head Ends Claim Of Being Forced To Work After Injuries

    Scientific Systems Company Inc., a Massachusetts-based military contractor, and a former department head have agreed to dismiss a Connecticut federal employment discrimination lawsuit that claimed the company forced its ex-employee to work with a spinal injury and broken fingers after he fell during a travel assignment.

  • July 31, 2025

    Rising Star: Proskauer's Rachel Fischer

    Proskauer Rose's Rachel Fischer has successfully defended high-profile clients such as Fox News in a former producer's sexual harassment and assault suit and the MLB in an umpire's race discrimination suit, earning her a spot among the employment practitioners under age 40 honored by Law360 as Rising Stars.

  • July 31, 2025

    Clinic Settles EEOC Disability Bias Suit Over Worker's Firing

    A pediatric clinic told a Georgia federal judge Thursday that it struck a $70,000 deal to end a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit claiming it fired an employee because she asked to work remotely to manage her anxiety and PTSD.

  • July 30, 2025

    DOJ Flags 'Unlawful Discrimination' To Gov't Fund Recipients

    The U.S. Department of Justice has outlined what it considers "unlawful discrimination" that federal funding recipients must avoid, including diversity, equity and inclusion programs, transgender athletes and "proxy" discrimination of assessing a job applicant's "cultural competence."

  • July 30, 2025

    9th Circ. Tells DOL To Hand Over Workforce Data To Reporters

    The Ninth Circuit said Wednesday that the U.S. Department of Labor must release federal contractor demographic reports to the Center for Investigative Reporting, backing a lower court's order that the data can't be concealed from the public under the concern that it contains commercial information.

  • July 30, 2025

    Mayo Clinic Forced Vaccine On Christian Worker, EEOC Says

    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission accused the Mayo Clinic on Wednesday of unlawfully threatening to fire a security guard who refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine for religious reasons.

  • July 30, 2025

    Workday Can't Shrink Collective Action Alleging AI Hiring Bias

    A California federal judge declined to cut workers from a collective action claiming Workday used artificial intelligence to discriminate against job applicants, denying the human resources company's arguments that workers who were screened by newly acquired technology were disqualified from the suit.

  • July 30, 2025

    Black Atty Alleges McDermott Fired Her Because Of Her Race

    McDermott Will & Emery LLP failed to address racist comments made during a diversity presentation, kept Black attorneys out of leadership and fired a Black associate who complained that she was repeatedly sidelined because of her race, the former employee alleged Wednesday in Illinois federal court.

  • July 30, 2025

    Noem Hit With Religious Discrimination Suit Over Ayahuasca

    A Florida woman alleges in a new federal discrimination lawsuit that U.S. Customs and Border Protection rescinded her job offer after she disclosed her religious practice includes consumption of ayahuasca tea, a federally controlled substance.

  • July 30, 2025

    Workday Wants Firm DQ'd Over Privileged Info In Atty's Suit

    Attorneys at Webb Law Group APC should be disqualified from representing an ex-Workday Inc. attorney in his bias suit against the company and should face sanctions for their "egregious behavior" in disclosing privileged information in a publicly filed document, Workday told a California federal magistrate judge.

  • July 30, 2025

    Calif. Health Group Says Insurer Must Cover Discovery Costs

    California's largest private health foundation told a federal court that a Berkshire Hathaway-owned insurer failed to cover roughly $400,000 in discovery costs the foundation incurred from an executive's now-settled wrongful termination lawsuit, arguing the insurer breached its obligations despite accepting coverage twice.

  • July 30, 2025

    Amazon Cut Worker Seeking ADA Accommodation, Suit Says

    Amazon broke federal disability law by firing a warehouse worker while he was in the process of submitting paperwork supporting his bid for extra break time to help him handle mental health issues, he told an Illinois federal court.

  • July 30, 2025

    Rising Star: Seyfarth's Leo Li

    Leo Li of Seyfarth Shaw LLP has championed clients facing wage-and-hour class actions and California Private Attorneys General Act claims, including by securing a win on appeal for a Southern California Pizza Hut franchisee after a decade of litigation involving thousands of delivery drivers, earning him a spot among employment law practitioners under age 40 honored by Law360 as Rising Stars.

  • July 30, 2025

    NJ County Dispatchers' Pay Affected By Bias, Union Says

    Camden County, New Jersey, pays telecommunication services workers who fall under protected classes — such as veterans and people of color — less than their counterparts who are not classified as such, a Communications Workers of America unit said in a proposed class action.

Expert Analysis

  • Employer Tips As Deepfakes Reshape Workplace Harassment

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    As the workplace harassment landscape faces the rising threat of fabricated media that hyperrealistically depict employees in sexual or malicious contexts, employers can stay ahead of the curve by tracking new legal obligations, and proactively updating policies, training and response protocols, say attorneys at Littler.

  • How To Balance AI Adoption With Employee Privacy Risks

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    As artificial intelligence transforms the workplace, organizations must learn to leverage AI's capabilities while safeguarding against employee privacy risks and complying with a complex web of regulations, including by vetting vendors, mitigating employee misuse and establishing a governance framework, say attorneys at Jackson Lewis.

  • How Ending OFCCP Will Affect Affirmative Action Obligations

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    As President Donald Trump's administration plans to eliminate the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, which enforces federal contractor antidiscrimination compliance and affirmative action program obligations, contractors should consider the best compliance approaches available to them, especially given the False Claims Act implications, say attorneys at Ogletree.

  • Employer Best Practices For Navigating Worker Separations

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    As job cuts hit several major industries, employers should take steps to minimize their exposure to discrimination claims, information leaks and enforcement challenges, such as maintaining sound documentation, strategic planning and legal coordination, says Mark Romance at Day Pitney.

  • Employer Tips For Responding To ICE In The Workplace

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    Increased immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump's administration has left employers struggling to balance their compliance obligations with their desire to provide a safe workplace, so creating a thorough response plan and training for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's presence at the workplace is crucial, say attorneys at Hanson Bridgett.

  • Handbook Hot Topics: Shifting Worker Accommodation Rules

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    Since President Donald Trump took office, many changes have directly affected how employers must address accommodation requests, particularly those concerning pregnancy-related medical conditions and religious beliefs, underscoring the importance of regularly reviewing and updating accommodation policies and procedures, say attorneys at Kutak Rock.

  • Shifting DEI Expectations Put Banks In Legal Crosshairs

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    The Trump administration's rollbacks on DEI-friendly policies create something of a regulatory catch-22 for banks, wherein strict compliance would contradict established statutory and administrative mandates regarding access to credit for disadvantaged communities, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

  • Compliance Tips After Court Axes EEOC's Trans Rights Take

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    A Texas federal court's recent decision struck portions of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's 2024 guidance pertaining to sexual orientation and gender identity under Title VII, barring their use nationwide and leaving employers unsure about how to proceed in their compliance efforts, say attorneys at Dorsey & Whitney.

  • 5 Insurance Claims That Could Emerge After NCAA Settlement

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    Following the recent NCAA class action settlement that will allow revenue sharing with college athletes, there may be potential management liability for universities, their executive leadership and boards that could expose insurers to tax, regulatory, breach of contract and other claims, says Sarah Abrams at Baleen Specialty.

  • 8th Circ. Ruling Highlights Complicated Remote Work Analysis

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    The Eighth Circuit’s recent opinion in Kuklenski v. Medtronic USA demonstrates that the applicability of employment laws to remote workers is often a fact-driven analysis, highlighting several parameters to consider when evaluating what state and local laws may apply to employees who work remotely, say attorneys at Vedder Price.

  • Philly Law Initiates New Era Of Worker Protections

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    A new worker protection law in Philadelphia includes, among other measures, a private right of action and recordkeeping requirements that may amount to a lower evidentiary standard, introducing a new level of accountability and additional noncompliance risks for employers, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Justices' Ruling Lowers Bar For Reverse Discrimination Suits

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's unanimous opinion in Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services, lowering the evidentiary burden for plaintiffs bringing so-called reverse discrimination claims, may lead to more claims brought by majority group employees — and open the door to legal challenges to employer diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, say attorneys at Ice Miller.

  • 4 Midyear Employer Actions To Reinforce Compliance

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    The legal and political landscape surrounding what the government describes as unlawful diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives has become increasingly complex over the past six months, and the midyear juncture presents a strategic opportunity to reinforce commitments to legal integrity, workplace equity and long-term operational resilience, say attorneys at Krevolin & Horst.