Ayo, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission just released a report on “The State of Age Discrimination and Older Workers in the U.S. 50 Years After the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA).” According to the EEOC press release, “[t]he report finds that age…
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
Reconvening Its Task Force and Filing 7 Suits, EEOC Signals Sex Harassment Still a Top Priority.
The EEOC sent a powerful signal last week that sexual harassment was still squarely on its radar filing 7 lawsuits against employers across the nation while reconvening its Select Task Force on the Study of Harassment in the Workplace. “As…
Taking Legal Drugs to Fight Addiction Is Covered by the ADA
Folks, I’m warning you, this is a tough one. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, an employer must provide a reasonable accommodation (if available) to a qualified individual with a disability upon request if doing so will enable that person to…
The Gender Pay Gap Is Also an Opportunity Gap
The current business climate has created a new focus, and even spurred new laws aimed at achieving equal pay, but not enough progress has been made. PayScale’s new research found that the gender pay gap still persists into 2018. Looking…
What You Need to Know About Massachusetts’ Updated Pay Equity Law
Back in 1945, Massachusetts became the first state in the country to pass an equal pay law. But despite its efforts, the gender pay gap unfortunately persisted. According to Mass.gov, women working full time in Massachusetts earn, on average, about…
EEO-1 Survey Deadline Extended to June 1
The EEOC is extending the filing deadline for the 2017 EEO-1 survey until June 1. Although the majority of employers met the original March 31 deadline, so many employers requested last minute technical assistance with the electronic filing that the…
Appeals Court Says Prior Salary Doesn’t Justify Pay Differences
Just in time for Equal Pay Day, a federal appeals court today ruled today that an employee’s salary history alone is insufficient to justify pay differences between male and female employees. “Reliance on past wages simply perpetuates the past pervasive…
‘Ground-Breaking’ Ruling Says Transgender Discrimination Is Covered by Title VII
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently ruled, in what many have described as a ground-breaking decision, that discrimination based on an employee’s transgender status is discrimination based on “sex” in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights…
What You Need to Do to Prevent Sexual Harassment In the #MeToo Era
In December, TIME Magazine’s “Person of the Year” was “The Silence Breakers.” These were the “women (who) have had it with bosses and coworkers who not only cross boundaries but don’t even seem to know that boundaries exist … These…
Avoid EEOC Trouble By Smart Hiring, Sound Procedures and Soft Skills
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) resolved 99,109 employment discrimination claims in fiscal year 2017, resulting in $398 million in compensation paid to claimants. Of the claims resolved, 47% were for retaliation by an employer against a complaining employee. These…
EEOC Sues to Protect Recovering Addict
As the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s fiscal year was coming to a close, the agency filed a slew of discrimination lawsuits. One that caught my eye involves an employer that allegedly rescinded an offer of employment once it found out the…
The Risks of Not Hiring: Adverse Action and Ban-The-Box
You already know how difficult it can be landing the right new hire. Nailing the job description. Asking the right interview questions (and avoiding the wrong ones). Reference checking. Salary negotiations. Onboarding. This isn’t easy work. But do you realize…
White House Suspends Pay Data Portion of EEO-1
Employers who were required to file pay and demographic data as part of a revised EEO-1 have been given a reprieve. The EEOC, under direction by the White House Office of Management and Budget, has suspended indefinitely the requirement to…
Court Sends Wellness Incentive Rules Back to EEOC
This week, a federal judge had some scathing words for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission as he tossed back its rules on the wellness program incentives telling it to rethink the whole thing. Remind me: What are these incentive rules?…
If You Hire In California, You Need to Know About These New Background Screening Rules
Several common background check practices became illegal in California last month. Recent additions to the state’s Fair Employment and Housing Act address how employers use criminal histories in employment decisions. A laudable goal – reducing employment barriers for people with criminal…
What Happens Online Can Get You In Trouble
Before social media, harassment, sexual or otherwise, was pretty much confined to office hours. Now, work and personal life have become so entangled that what happens at work no longer stays at work. “Our employees are connected 24/7,” says Jeffrey Miller,…
Court Says You Can Fire A Worker You Believe Made Up A Discrimination Claim
It’s not just people who fabricate complaints of discrimination at work who can be fired, but those whom you believe fabricated discrimination claims. Everybody, roar it with me, “Yassssss!” In Villa v. Cavamezze Grill, LLC. the plaintiff was a low-level manager…
7 Workplace Sins That Could Land You In Court
If you think your organization is immune from workplace misconduct, think again. One in three women between the ages of 18-34 say they’ve been sexually harassed in the workplace. Moreover, many workers (40% to 60% in one study) say they’ve…
Update on Employment Laws Pending and Passed by the States
As April showers turn into May flowers, measures proposed earlier this year in the state legislatures begin to take root. Significantly fewer generally applicable labor and employment bills were introduced in April, around 60 overall, with Michigan tallying the most…
3 Steps You Can Take to Close the Gender Pay and Opportunity Gaps
Gender pay data can be examined in a number of different ways, but no matter how you slice it, the pay gap still exists. The most recent research by compensation data and software company PayScale, where I work, shows that…