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Identifying Signs of Sexual Harassment: 6 Facts

Jul 26

Los Angeles LawyerDiscrimination, Employment Law, Labor law, Sexual Harrassment 1 Comment

When does an act or gesture become an act of harassment? What constitutes sexual harassment?

Among the countless cases of sexual harassment cases in the workplace, one was recently brought by Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) against a Michigan-based employer and Burger King Franchise owner for sexual harassment and retaliation.

According to the federal lawsuit, filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, TSW Management, Inc. had violated Title VII when it subjected a group of female employees, including minors, to sexual harassment and retaliation.

Billion-Dollar Discrimination Suit against Wal-Mart Comes to a Halt

Jun 24

Los Angeles LawyerDiscrimination, Employment Law, Labor law 3 Comments

The Supreme Court ruled out the class action lawsuit filed by over 1.5 million former employees of Wal-Mart in the biggest discrimination suit of the decade.

The sex discrimination suit, which potentially amounts to billions of dollars in damages, was filed by female employees who worked in Wal-Mart’s 3,400 stores across the United States from 1998. Plaintiffs complained that the company has been discriminating against female workers.

EMPLOYMENT LAW: The Effect of Arizona Law on Discrimination Issues

May 31

Los Angeles LawyerDiscrimination, Employment Law, Wrongful Termination california employment law attorney, discrimination in the workplace No Comments

The US Supreme Court has recently voted 5-3 (Chamber of Commerce v. Whiting) which upheld an Arizona law that penalizes employers who “unknowingly” hires unauthorized foreign workers.

According to the High Court, the federal immigration law “does not pre-empt the Arizona statute”, specifically the Legal Arizona Workers Act which says that “the state can revoke the licenses of businesses that intentionally hire illegal aliens”. In addition to this, the Court also upheld the provision requiring companies to use the federal E-Verify system to check the immigration status of job applicants.

EMPLOYMENT LAW: The Effect of Arizona Law on Discrimination Issues

May 31

Los Angeles LawyerDiscrimination, Employment Law California Employment Law Attorneys, discrimination in the workplace, Employment Law No Comments

The US Supreme Court has recently voted 5-3 (Chamber of Commerce v. Whiting) which upheld an Arizona law that penalizes employers who “unknowingly” hires unauthorized foreign workers.

According to the High Court, the federal immigration law “does not pre-empt the Arizona statute”, specifically the Legal Arizona Workers Act which says that “the state can revoke the licenses of businesses that intentionally hire illegal aliens”. In addition to this, the Court also upheld the provision requiring companies to use the federal E-Verify system to check the immigration status of job applicants.

How will this affect workers and employees?

According to workers’ rights groups, the Arizona law encourages ethnic stereotyping and discrimination in the workplace, which will result in rejection for a job applicant so that an employer can avoid state sanctions or out of fear that he may be hiring an illegal worker. Or will this result into further stereotyping of workers who are suspected to be working illegally?

Employer-Employee Actions Not Required by Law

May 24

Los Angeles LawyerEmployment Law, Labor law, Sexual Harrassment, national origin discrimination discrimination and harassment issues, empoyer-employee relationship, Labor law No Comments

Issues in the employer-employee relationship can sometimes lead to disputes and lawsuits. Workplace disputes however may arise out of different factors that may involve the following issues:

• Workplace safety issues
• Wage and hour issues
• Meal and rest break issues
• Discrimination and harassment issues
• Other labor related issues

However, in a report based on an article by Ellen Savage, labor law adviser to the California Chamber of Commerce, surprisingly, it mentioned that some employer-employee actions “are not required by law” – meaning some employment practices are not really required by law.

California Labor Law on Workplace Safety Violations

May 20

Los Angeles LawyerEmployment Law, Wrongful Termination, whistleblower law california employment and labor attorneys, workplace safety No Comments

How far can an employer continue with its operation despite workplace safety violations before he gets fined?

The California Occupational Safety and Health Administration could have answered this better as it had recently slapped a California construction contractor with over $235, 000 for willful violations of workplace safety rules.

Fisher Nut Company to Pay $150,000 in Retaliation Lawsuit Settlement

May 11

Los Angeles LawyerDiscrimination, Employment Law, whistleblower law employment discrimination, retaliation lawsuit, whistleblowing No Comments

When an employer or a supervisor wants to retaliate, there’s nothing that’s going to hold them back and keep them from making trumped up charges or irrational warnings, like in the case filed against Fisher Nut Company for retaliation where one employee was even reprimanded for “laughing during the course of the work day”.

A retaliation lawsuit was against the California-based almond-processing company by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) after it discovered that a group of Latina employees were subjected to unfavorable actions and retaliation because they participated in an informal meeting.