Labor & Employment Law

Selected from iNews Related to Equal Employment Opportunity

U.S. Supreme Court

Public Citizen?s most recent Sup Ct Watch list here
SCOTUSblog?s most recent Petitions to Watch here
Ross Runkel?s US Sup Ct Employment Law Cases ? Pending & decided here

Decided

Crawford v. Metro Gov't of Nashville & Davidson County, No. 06-1595 - Title VII/retaliation: (From SCOTUSwiki): The Court unanimously concluded that the ordinary meaning of ?oppose? includes giving a ?disapproving account? of unlawful behavior, even if the employee takes no further action on her own to seek to stop or remedy the conduct. Accepting the rule set forth in the EEOC?s Compliance Manual, the Court concluded that ?When an employee communicates to her employer a belief that the employer has engaged in . . . a form of employment discrimination, that communication virtually always constitutes the employee?s opposition to the activity.? The Court held open the possibility of ?eccentric cases? in which the employee makes clear his approval of the conduct in conveying the information (for example, describing a racist joke as hilarious probably wouldn?t count as opposing the joke-telling).

January 26, 2009 decision here
SCOTUS docket here
SCOTUSwiki here

14 Penn Plaza LLC v. Pyett, No. 07-581- Enforceability of collectively bargained arbitration clause - (From SCOTUSwiki): Justice Thomas?s majority opinion held that nothing in either the National Labor Relations Act, which controls collective bargaining agreements made on behalf of union members, or the ADEA forbids unions from mandating arbitration to resolve statutory discrimination claims. The majority touted the importance of allowing parties to bargain contractually for exchanges of rights and responsibilities, and it noted that courts should generally not interfere in this process. According to the majority, ?[t]he decision to fashion a [collective bargaining agreement] to require arbitration of employment-discrimination claims is no different from the many other decisions made by parties in designing grievance machinery.?

o April 1, 2009 decision here
o SCOTUS docket here
o SCOTUSwiki here
o Noted here: George Lenard

AT&T v. Hulteen, No. 07-543 - Title VII/Denial of pre-?79 pregnancy leave service credits in computing pension - (From the decision syllabus): An employer does not necessarily violate the PDA when it pays pension benefits calculated in part under an accrual rule, applied only pre-PDA, that gave less retirement credit for pregnancy than for medical leave generally. Because AT&T?s pension payments accord with a bona fide seniority system?s terms, they are insulated from challenge under Title VII §703(h).

o May 18, 2009 decision here
o SCOTUS docket here
o SCOTUSwiki here
o Noted here: Reuters; Connecticut Employment Law Blog; Yahoo; WAPO; Christian Science Monitor; Bloomberg; Shaw Valenza; NYTimes; FYI: Central Ohio Employment Law Update; Ross Runkel; Paul Mollica; SCOTUSblog (opinion recap); Fisher & Phillips; Jackson Lewis; California Labor & Employment Law Blog; Constangy, Brooks & Smith; Townhall; Workplace Prof Blog; NYTimes (Opinion); Huffington Post; Ford & Harrison; Today?s Workplace

Argued - Awaiting Decision

Gross v. FBL Fin. Servs, No. 08-441- ADEA/Must a plaintiff present direct evidence of discrimination in order to obtain a mixed-motive instruction in a non-Title VII discrimination case?

o March 31, 2009 Argument Transcript here
o SCOTUS docket here
o SCOTUSwiki here

Ricci v. Destefano, No. 07-1428 and 08-328 - Title VII/Whether municipalities may decline to certify results of an exam that would make disproportionately more white applicants eligible for promotion than minority applicants, due to fears that certifying the results would lead to charges of racial discrimination

o April 22, 2009 Argument Transcript here
o SCOTUS docket here
o SCOTUSwiki here
o Cornell Law School/LII herent>
o Noted here: Connecticut Employment Law Blog

Selected Cases Pending Cert:

Oakley v. City of Memphis, No. 08-744 - T VII
See issue description at Public Citizen:
o SCOTUS docket here

Baxter Healthcare Corp v. White., No. 08-960* -TVII /span>
See issue description at Public Citizen
o SCOTUS docket here
o *Petition denied May 18, 2009

McKnight v. Gen. Motors Corp., No. 08-1113 - ADA
See issue description at Public Citizen
o SCOTUS docket here

Adam v. Salazar, No. 08-1097 - ADEA
See issue description at Public Citizen
o SCOTUS docket here

Lewis, et al. v. City of Chicago, No. 08-974 ? T VII
See issue description (+briefs links) at SCOTUSblog
o SCOTUS docket here
o Noted here: SCOTUSblog (w/ brief links and noting that the Court has invited the views of the SG)

2nd Circuit

Duffett v. LaHood, No. 07-1831 (2d Cir. May 15, 2009)(Unpub) - Affirming dismissal of air traffic controller?s ADA regarded-as/assignment claims

New York items

DECIDED

Out-of-State Employee May Sue NY Employer for Discrimination Under State and City Human Rights Laws

FILED

[5-14] Gender/Retal: Justin Timberlake?s restaurant Southern Hospitality sued by fem ex-ee

Fired Black fem Black Equity Alliance CEO says she was canned for backing ?White and Jewish? Mike Bloomberg

EEOC Charge: Citigroup?s layoff of fems = recessionary bias

NEWS

Gender: More on 4 fems? suit vs Ulster Cnty Jail

Retaliation: Fem Utica cop says reprimand is retaliation for earlier gender/promotion-denial complaint; more here

Sex Harass: Schenectady City SD expects to be sued by fem office assistant for sex harass by male ex-facilities director

SETTLED

Delphi pays $80K to settle EEOC suit for employee who was fired.

Full post as published by New York Public Personnel Law on May 23, 2009 (boomark / email).