By Eric B. Meyer on October 17, 2012 7:00 AM | The Employer Handbook That’s right folks. It’s time for another edition of “Fact or Fiction” a/k/a “Quick Answers to Quick Questions” a/k/a QATQQ f/k/a “I don’t feel like writing a long blog post.” Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, an employer engages in unlawful retaliation when, in response to an employee complaint of discrimination, it acts in a way that may dissuade a reasonable worker from making or supporting a charge of discrimination. So, let’s assume that an individual files a charge of discrimination with the EEOC  [ Read More ]

Topic: Employment Background Checks and the EEOC The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (the “Commission”) approved, by a 4-1 vote, a revised Enforcement Guidance on the Consideration of Arrest and Conviction Records in Employment Decisions under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (the “Guidance”). This law has already gone into effect. The revised guidance reflects the EEOC’s long-held position that employers’ reliance on arrest and conviction records may have a disparate impact on individuals because of their race or national origin. Before disqualifying an individual with a criminal record from employment, the Commission emphasizes, employers should engage in  [ Read More ]

SunTrust Banks, one of the nation’s largest financial services providers, plans to “vigorously defend” itself against a sexual harassment lawsuit brought by a federal agency in a Florida court last week. The suit alleges that a branch manager in Sarasota subjected female employees to “unwelcome, sexually graphic and vulgar sexual harassment” over three years. Court filings from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission describe an escalating pattern of “sexually offensive comments and conduct” that continued for years despite multiple complaints by employees, who were later fired or left their jobs. The alleged perpetrator, however, still works for SunTrust. He was recently  [ Read More ]

The Unites States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is the Federal agency responsible for investigating discrimination claims brought under and enforcing Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the Equal Pay Act (EPA). States and cities also have agencies that enforce state and local anti-discrimination statutes and ordinances. The way in which you proceed before the EEOC and/or the state agency investigating your claim may impact your rights and can even limit the remedies available to you. The Law Offices of Stephan T. Mashel have experience  [ Read More ]

Questions And Answers Federal Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Laws I. What Are the Federal Laws Prohibiting Job Discrimination? Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin; the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (EPA), which protects men and women who perform substantially equal work in the same establishment from sex-based wage discrimination; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA), which protects individuals who are 40 years of age or older; Title I and Title V of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990,  [ Read More ]