You gotta love these stories, sometimes. An employee goes back to her home country, the Phillipines with her husband for seven weeks. They visit family, friends. The husband is disabled. They visit a miraculous Catholic church, known for its healing abilities. The wife pushes her husband’s wheel chair, comforts him, provides psychological counseling, helps with
English Only Rules Spark Controversy
English only rules always bring controversy, even at a bookstore in New Haven, Connecticut, very near Yale university. The EEOC generally frowns on such rules, but allows them for "business necessity." In this case, the book store is essentially claiming the customers are uncomfortable with employees speaking Spanish. Does the comfort of customers count
11th Circuit Overturns Prior Ruling
The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals rendered a good decision on a sex harassment case. Reeves v. CH Robinson Worldwide. The latest version is an en banc decision overruling the result by an earlier 11th Circuit three judge panel. An en banc decision means all the judges of the Court participated
San Antonio ML King Day March One of the Largest in the Country
100,000 attend the Martin Luther King Day march held ever year here in San Antonio. Mayor Julian Castro says it is because our significant Hispanic population identifies with the civil rights struggle that King epitomizes. We were fortunate here not to have the clashes and strikes in the 60’s and 70′ seen elsewhere during the
Discrimination Laws in Texas
“Title VII” “Texas Commission on Human Rights Act” “EEOC” “Civil Rights Division” “Americans with Disabilities Act” “Age Discrimination in Employment Act”
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EEOC Statistics Show Continued High Numbers of Charges
EEOC statistics have been released. Total charges for FY 2009 were 93,277. That number is down slightly from FY 2008 when a total of 95,402 charges were filed. But, recall that prior to 2008, the EEOC had never received more than 90,000 charges. The previous highest number was 84,000 in one year. The
ADA Retaliation Claimant not Entitled to Compensatory, Punitive damages
The Ninth Circuit joins the Seventh Circuit in finding that an employee suing for retaliation under the Americans with Disabilities Act is not entitled to compensatory damages or punitive damages. Alvarado v. Cajun Operating Co., No. 08-15549 (9th Cir. 12/11/09). The court also ruled that a jury is not available. See brief discussion
An Employer Cannot be an Ostrich in Response to Complaints
“sex harassment” “Duch v. Jakubek” “EEO” “Investigation” “Title VII”
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“Women-Hating” Dallas Fire Department
Aaron Ramirez, a plaintiff employment lawyer in Dallas, writes about the "woman-hating" Dallas Fire Department. The "D" magazine published an article with that just that title. He wrote about the sex harassment issues again at this post. I hope the Dallas experience is unique. I represented a female victim of sex harassment at the
Direct Evidence of Discrimination Should be Enough
What does it take to show discrimination, if this is not enough? The best evidence to show discrimination is almost always what we call direct evidence. The "n" word, for example, is always good evidence to show racial prejudice. Using the term "old man" is very good evidence to show age bias. So, this case