Diana Uhimov, March 16, 2017 The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently issued proposed guidance on workplace harassment. The EEOC is a federal agency charged with enforcing laws that protect individuals from harassment based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, age, or genetic information. The Proposed Enforcement Guidance on Unlawful Harassment clarifies the legal standards that apply to harassment claims under federal employment discrimination laws.  In its press release accompanying the issuance of the proposed guidance, the EEOC stated that the new direction is essential because of…

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Date: June 22, 2016, Megan J. Muoio In June 2016, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released the report of its Select Task Force on the Study of Harassment in the Workplace. It has been 30 years since the Supreme Court held in Meritor Savings Bank v. Vinson that harassment is a form of workplace discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Workplace harassment takes many forms, such as harassment on the basis of sex (which includes sexual orientation, gender identity, and pregnancy),…

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Diana Uhimov, February 23, 2016 The Compassionate Care Act (CCA) was signed into law in New York in 2014, making New York the 23rd state in the U.S. to legalize medical marijuana.  The CCA regulates the manufacture, sale and use of medical marijuana in New York.  Under the Act, certified patients are allowed to use marijuana for treatment of a “serious condition” so long as the treatment is prescribed by a certified physician.  Additionally, the CCA establishes employment regulations for medical marijuana use, including the creation of new…

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Diana Uhimov, January 7, 2016 On December 19, 2015, the New York City Commission on Human Rights announced that the city’s Human Rights Law would establish among the strongest protections in the country for transgender people.  New York City landlords, employers and businesses will be subject to the new regulations.  Gender identity and expression bias has been illegal in New York City since 2002.  But the announcement provided guidance for the first time on what conduct constitutes discrimination under the city’s Human Rights Law, setting forth penalties of…

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By: Megan J. Muoio, November 25, 2015 On October 21, 2015, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a decision by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) finding that two employees were improperly fired because of negative discussion of their employer on the social media site Facebook. The employees were non-union employees at the Triple Play Sports Bar and Grille located in Watertown, Connecticut. In the case before the NLRB, Three D, LLC (Triple Play) was found to have illegally fired two employees in connection with Facebook complaints…

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Paula Lopez, May 12, 2015. On May 6, 2015, Mayor Bill De Blasio signed into law Bill A-261A, which amends the New York City Human Rights Law (NYC HRL) to prohibit employers, labor organizations and employment agencies from conducting credit checks as part of their hiring process and from discriminating against an applicant or employee based on credit history.  Although the new law provides for certain exemptions where employers are permitted to request and rely on credit-related information, the exemptions are limited. Employers with four or more employees…

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By: Megan J. Muoio, April 7 2015 On March 25, 2015, the Supreme Court handed down a decision in Young v. United Parcel Service, Inc., a case challenging the interpretation and applicability of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) and that has drawn national attention. Young was a part-time driver for UPS, which requires that its drivers lift up to 70 pounds. After Young became pregnant, her doctor advised her not to lift more than 20 pounds. UPS told Young that she could not work under a lifting restriction. However,…

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Diana Uhimov, February 13, 2015. Workplace relationships may be initiated at any time of the year, but the romantic theme of Valentine’s Day can lead to inappropriate behavior that employees might not otherwise engage in.  That makes February an opportune time for companies to reevaluate their policies on office romance and harassment, and to remind employees of the rules. A recent survey by Career Builder found that 37% of workers have dated a coworker.  But when intraoffice relationships sour, employers can be subjected to legal claims of discrimination…

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Megan J. Muoio, September 11, 2014 In 2000, the State of Colorado legalized medical marijuana use by individuals with debilitating medical conditions. Then in January 2013, it attracted attention by legalizing recreational marijuana use, but it is the use of medical marijuana that has sparked an important employment law-related debate. For employers in New Jersey, where medical marijuana is already legal, and New York, where it is expected that medical marijuana will be legalized soon, Colorado is the first test for regulating employees’ medical use of marijuana outside…

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Megan J. Muoio, June 19, 2014 The Equal Opportunity Employment Commission has recently filed multiple claims challenging employers’ standard separation agreements. On February 14, 2014, the EEOC filed suit against CVS Pharmacy in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The EEOC alleged that CVS’s standard separation agreement deters employees from exercising their rights to file discrimination charges and participate in EEOC investigations. The separation agreement in question contained standard, boilerplate language common to separation agreements and provisions that are commonly used by employers…

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