Potential clients almost always want to know, "Do I have a case?" Unfortunately, the best I can say is "maybe" or "it depends." Until I can hear how the employer defends its actions, I can only "shoot in the dark." The other side of the story is critical to an employment case. A recent post
Discrimination
Fifth Circuit Rules Sidewalks Must Be Accessible
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Discrimination
So, at least in the Fifth Circuit, sidewalks are now a "service" of the city such that the city must make sidewalks accessible to persons with disabiliuties. The Fifth Circuit so ruled in the case of Frame v. City of Arlington. The district court had dismssed the plaintffs’ suit because, said the court, the…
Big Man Sues White Castle Burgers over its Small Booths
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Discrimination
A big man has sued White Castle hamburgers in New York because the booth was too small for him and he limped out of the restaurant. The lawsuit claims he smacked his knee into a metal post on one visit in 2009. He filed suit under the Americans with Disabilities Act. See MSNBC story. "I’m…
Fifth Circuit Recognizes Hostile Work Environment Claims Under the ADEA
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Discrimination
The Fifth Circuit has recognized that a hostile work environment claim can exist under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. The Fifth Circuit has never reached such a conclusion before now. In Dediol v. Best Chevrolet, Inc., the Federal appellate court reversed a grant of summary judgment in favor of the employer.
The Court…
Written Counseling is Critical
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Discrimination, Unemployment Benefits
Written counseling is important. I have advised and represented small business owners. The best protection from a false claim is written counseling made at the time of the alleged infraction. Even the most basic workplace will have scratch paper somewhere. You as a manager need to include the basics: what the employee did wrong, when…
EEOC Ordered to Pay $2.6 Million in Attorney’s Fees
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Discrimination
The EEOC has been hit with another sanction of attorney’s fees. A court assessed $2.6 million in attorney’s fees against the EEOC due to a lawsuit they filed which they lost. See Workplace Prof blog post. The EEOC had sought class action status in EEOC v. Cintas and lost. Because the EEOC did not…
Bexar County Deputy Accused of Racial Profiling
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Discrimination
Residents of a north Bexar County community have accused a deputy Sheriff of racial profiling. See San Antonio Express News report. Some residents of Timberwood Park, near Bulverde, and local activists claim that Deputy Patrick Plate has been targeting Hispanics and pulling them over for traffic stops and calling US Immigration and Customs Enforcement…
Houston Jury Awards $730,000
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Discrimination
Surina Dixon was hired by Texas Southern University in Houston, Texas to coach women’s basketball. She quit her job in Tennessee and moved to Texas with her husband in 2008. She noticed soon after she arrived that the new men’s basketball coach was paid $148,000 while she was to be paid only $75,000. She complained.
Counter Lawsuits are not a Good Idea
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Defamation, Discrimination
Retaliatory lawsuits are rarely a good idea. Employers can feel very offended when an employee files a lawsuit. The employment relationship can be like family. So, sure, many employers feel some betrayal when they are sued. But, to respond with a counter-lawsuit almost never works.
In one case, the employer responded to a discrimination lawsuit…
Texas Employees Are Not Protected fron Reprisal for Voting
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Discrimination
As a lawyer, I often tell my non-lawyer friends we have two duties as citizens: to vote and to serve on a jury. Surely, if nothing else, our Republic was founded on the principle of an educated electorate that casts votes. But, if we ask for time off from our job to vote, we can…