There are so many cases discussing the burden of proof in discrimination cases. It is even more complicated when the plaintiff is alleging mixed motives. Mixed motive cases refers to those cases that have a mix of motives, unlawful and lawful. For example, a plaintiff who alleges she was overlooked for a promotion due to
San Diego Jury Awards $185 Million in Punitive Damages
A San Diego, California jury recently awarded less than one million in compensatory damages and another $185 million in punitive damages to a woman who sued for pregnancy based discrimination. See Workplace Prof blog post. The suit was lodged against AutoZone. Rosario Juarez alleged that she was fired after being told that pregnant women
A True Cowboy Judges a Person On His/Her Own Merits
An acquaintance passed away recently. His passing brought to mind the high school I graduated from in 1975. Mike Gallagher graduated from John Marshal High School a couple of years before I did. He was a football player, and an officer in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. In other words, he was at the top
Racism Alive and Well in East Texas
Racism comes in degrees. A wise man once said we are all racist to some degree. Well, one truck driver in East Texas is way off to one degree. On the back of his pick-up truck, he has professionally painted a picture of a a banana and Pres. Obama wearing Somali garb. The tailgate asks
Court Finds Factual Issues Regarding Accommodations
The ADA Amendments Act was passed in 2009. Since then, courts have addressed more fundamental questions about disability claims, such as what are the essential functions of a job and how can they be accommodated? On one such case, Perez v. Sprint/United Management Co., 2013 WL 6970898, No. 12-CV-3161 (N.D. Ga 12/19/2013), the court
EEOC Finds Evidence of Discrimination at City of San Antonio
Well, I guess it is going to snow this coming July, or at least in March. The EEOC has found in favor of an employee. They have found evidence of discrimination. Finding in favor of the employee may not be as rare as snow in July, but it does approach the rarity of snow in
Cher is Sued for Discrimination
Three back-up dancers have filed suit against Cher. They claim she fired them because they are African-American. Cher’s tour, "Dressed to Kill," has been very successful. But, she reportedly said her back-up dancers had too much color. She allegedly told choreographer, Kevin Wilson, not to hire any more dark skinned dancers. The lawsuit was filed
Flexible Work Schedule Can be a Reasonable Accommodation
I have written before about flexible work schedules. See my prior posts here and here. Sometimes, a worker with a disability will need a flexible work schedule as an accommodation. Recently, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals has affirmed that yes, flexible work schedules can be a reasonable accommodation. In Solomon v. Vilsack
The Missing Right-to-Sue Letters
I wish I had a dollar for everytime this has happened here in San Antonio or especially across the country. A person came to see me who did not receive his "right-to-sue letter" from the EEOC. It was sent four months ago, but he just now found out about it. He contacted the EEOC to
Testy Responses Harm One’s Case
It is never good to annoy a judge during a trial. Yet, that is what John V. Garza, former Republican state representative from San Antonio, did in federal court earlier this week. In the lawsuit concerning alleged racial gerrymandering by the Republican party, Mr. Garza testified about a conversation with other state representatives in 2011.