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The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that adverse employment actions need not be “significant” in order to constitute a violation of Title VII’s prohibition against discrimination. This ruling undercuts decades of court decisions that applied a heightened standard of harm, although recent federal appellate court rulings already showed a trend […]

On April 15, 2024, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued a Final Rule and Interpretive Guidance to implement the relatively new Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), which was enacted by Congress in December of 2022 and which already took effect on June 27, 2023. The Final Rule and Interpretive […]

The Maryland General Assembly’s 2024 session ended at midnight on Monday, April 8. A number of employment bills that were passed will have a significant impact on employers, including another delay to the new paid family and medical leave insurance (FAMLI) program, a new salary posting requirement, and new discrimination […]

Following the increased interest in diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in the context of the murder of George Floyd and the #BlackLivesMatter movement, we warned employers to be careful about rushing into anti-discrimination initiatives, like diversity hiring quotas, that could, in fact, violate Title VII. We reiterated this warning […]

On February 29, 2024, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs announced a new Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA) landing page with new resources added to existing ones to assist federal contractors and subcontractors to comply with their obligations under the law. VEVRAA prohibits federal (sub)contractors from discrimination […]

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has issued a decision that seeks “to demystify” part of the well-established standard for proving disparate treatment discrimination under Title VII (i.e., that an employee has been treated less favorably than co-workers who do not share the same protected characteristic). In […]

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit gave short shrift to an employer’s argument that it should not have to respond to a subpoena from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission because the time that it would take employees to find responsive documents was an undue burden. In EEOC […]

The Fair Labor Standards Act requires employers to pay non-exempt employees at least the minimum wage, free and clear. And if the employer requires the employee to provide their own “tools” for work, the employer must reimburse the employee for 100% of the cost. But how should that cost be […]

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit found that the employee’s threats, as well as her stealing time, were legitimate reasons for her termination, contrary to her claims that her employer interfered with her rights and retaliated against her in violation of the Family and Medical Leave Act, […]

The U.S. Department of Labor has created a new Competitive Integrated Employment Transformation Hub to collect resources from various federal agencies that provide practical guidance, policy information, and best practices for those with disabilities and their employers, as well as other related entities and individuals. According to the DOL, competitive […]