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EEOC Rules That "Don't Tread On Me" Hat Might Be Racially Offensive

Kollman & Saucier
08/04/2016
Agency Activity, Employment Discrimination, Virginia Employment Law
According to an article in the Washington Post, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has ruled that an employee may create a racially hostile work environment by wearing a hat depicting the "Gasden Flag" (a coiled rattlesnake and the phrase "Don't Tread On Me").  Sheldon D. v. Brennan, 2016 WL 3361228. The Gasden Flag, which gained recent popularity as a symbol of the Tea Party movement, has its origins in the American Revolution, when it was...
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Court Strikes Down DOL's New Persuader Rule

Kollman & Saucier
06/30/2016
Agency Activity, Labor Law
On June 27, 2016, in National Federation of Independent Business et al. v. Perez, et al., the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas (Lubbock Division) issued a nationwide injunction preventing the  U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) from implementing  its revised "Persuader Rule," which had been set to take effect on July 1, 2016. The Court found that NFIB and other plaintiffs  established a substantial likelihood of success on...
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EEOC Settles One of its First Sexual Orientation Lawsuits

Kollman & Saucier
06/28/2016
Agency Activity, Employment Discrimination
On June 23, 2016, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and IFCO Systems settled for about $200,000  a Title VII case involving a lesbian work lift worker who alleged she was harassed and discriminated against based on her sexual orientation.  The case was  one of the first lawsuits filed by the EEOC alleging that a private employer violated Title VII  by treating an employee differently because of their sexual orientation. In EEOC v....
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EEOC Issues Proposed Guidance On National Origin Discrimination

Kollman & Saucier
06/08/2016
Agency Activity, National Origin
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has released a Proposed Enforcement Guidance on National Origin Discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.  The EEOC will take public comments on the proposed guidance until July 1, 2016. The EEOC has not formally addressed national origin discrimination since 2002.  Since that time, claims of Title VII violations based on national origin have increased.  In 2015,...
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Inadequate Conciliation? EEOC May Have to Foot the Bill, Says Supreme Court

Kollman & Saucier
06/01/2016
Agency Activity, Employment Discrimination
The United States Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the EEOC may be ordered to pay an employer’s attorney’s fees if it fails to satisfy the conciliation requirement of Title VII.  In CRST Van Expedited, Inc. v. EEOC, No. 14-1375 (May 19, 2016), the Court held that a favorable ruling on the merits of a claim is not required for an employer to be considered a “prevailing party” that may seek legal fees.  The opinion expands Mach Mining v....
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DOL Issues Final Rule Doubling the Salary Threshold for Overtime Exemption

Kollman & Saucier
05/18/2016
Agency Activity, Wage & Hour
Later today, over two scoops of butter pecan, Vice President Joe Biden and United States Department of Labor Secretary Tom Perez will appear at an ice cream parlor in Ohio to announce that the DOL has issued a Final Rule that will allow more workers to qualify for overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The long-awaited final rule doubles the salary threshold at which a worker may qualify as exempt from receiving overtime. ...
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DOL and EEOC Weigh In On Title VII and Bathroom Restriction Laws

Kollman & Saucier
05/06/2016
Agency Activity, Employment Discrimination
Earlier this week, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued a fact sheet titled “Bathroom Access Rights for Transgender Employees Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.”  Yesterday, the Department of Justice sent a letter to North Carolina’s governor stating that his state’s H.B. 2 -- legislation which requires individuals to use public restrooms associated with their gender at birth -- violates Title VII of the Civil...
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EEOC Has Right to Investigate Charge Filed by Undocumented Worker

Kollman & Saucier
04/26/2016
Agency Activity, Employment Discrimination
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has ruled that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") has the right to investigate a charge of discrimination filed by an employee who was not legally authorized to work in the United States. EEOC v. Maritime Autowash, Inc., 4th Cir No. 15-1947 (April 25, 2016).  Although the Court found the Commission may investigate the claims, it did not resolve the broader question of...
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The Final Persuader Rule Is Here, For Now.

Kollman & Saucier
03/24/2016
Agency Activity, Labor Law, Union Activity
On March 23, 2016, the Department of Labor revealed its long-time coming final rule that requires certain disclosures now be made for outside labor relations consultants who assist employers during union organizing activity or collective bargaining, and which are no longer protected under the "advice" exemption under the disclosure obligations.  The reporting requirements under Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act will now include any third...
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EEOC Files Its First Sexual Orientation Discrimination Lawsuits

Kollman & Saucier
03/03/2016
Agency Activity, Employment Discrimination
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has filed two lawsuits claiming that the plaintiffs were discriminated against because of sexual orientation. These are the first cases the EEOC has filed with Title VII claims based on sexual orientation. One of the lawsuits, EEOC v. Pallett Cos, No. 16-595, was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland. The other, EEOC v. Scott Med. Ctr., was filed in federal court in...
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