Articles on workplace-related issues from newspapers and Internet news sources around the country.
November 18, 2019
Adecco USA to Pay $49,500 to Settle EEOC Disability Discrimination Suit
Source: EEOC, EEOC
Adecco USA, Inc., a staffing agency based in Jacksonville, Fla., will pay $49,500 and furnish significant equitable relief to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.
67% of workers say spending too much time in meetings distracts them from doing their job
Source: Abigail Hess, CNBC
If sitting through a useless meeting at work sounds like your worst nightmare, you’re not alone.
A new report finds the majority of workers across the country feel they are being forced into counterproductive meetings and calls on a regular basis.
Steve Wynn Claims He Can't Be Punished For Sexual Harassment Because He Is No Longer at Company
Source: Aila Slisco, News Week
Former casino boss Steve Wynn has claimed that he cannot be held responsible for sexual harassment claims against him, because he's quit the gaming industry and is no longer legally tied to the company that bears his name.
EEOC Plans to Stop Providing Official Time to Union Reps Governmentwide
Source: Erich Wagner , Government Executive
In an internal draft of a rules change, the commission argues official time to work on EEOC complaints should be subject to agency collective bargaining negotiations, despite statutory protections.
How Getting Sued For Workplace Discrimination Can Lead To More Diverse Teams
Source: Elana Lyn Gross, Forbes
A vast majority of large U.S. corporations, including nearly all of the 500 largest, have made payouts in at least one employment discrimination or harassment lawsuit since 2000. But according to a new report, the high cost of this litigation has an unexpected upside: it can improve gender and racial equality at the companies in question.
November 15, 2019
Walmart to Pay $80,000 and Implement Nationwide Change in Policy to Settle EEOC Disability Lawsuit
Source: EEOC, EEOC
Walmart Inc. will pay $80,000 and implement nationwide changes to its disability reassignment policy to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.
Uber Hit With $650 Million Employment Tax Bill in New Jersey (3)
Source: Chris Opfer, Bloomberg Law
Uber Technologies Inc. owes New Jersey about $650 million in unemployment and disability insurance taxes because the rideshare company has been misclassifying drivers as independent contractors, the state’s labor department said.
A striking number of nurses say they're victims of workplace violence
Source: Megan Cerullo, CBS News
Many Americans seeking a career have streamed into nursing in recent years, drawn by the ample employment opportunities, good pay and sense of purpose the profession offers. Less evident is a darker side of the job — a level of workplace violence that has many nurses fearing for their own safety.
How To Remain Calm Under Pressure In The Workplace
Source: Jorge Gutierrez , Forbes
We have all seen it and even experienced it: a reaction to an event, a comment or even a thing that triggers an immediate emotional response accompanied by secondary and tertiary effects. But when and why does this happen?
How is technology changing your workplace culture?
Source: Doug Claffey, Houston Chronicle
Technology is influencing the culture of your workplace. The question is, will it create intended positive results or sidetrack the organization’s mission?
November 14, 2019
Nabors Corporate Services and C&J Well Services Settle EEOC Race Discrimination Suit for $1.2 Million
Source: EEOC, EEOC
Nabors Corporate Services, Inc. and C&J Well Services, Inc., two Houston-based oil field services companies, have agreed to pay nine Black employees and one of their White co-workers a total of $1,225,000 to settle a race discrimination and retaliation lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the agency announced today.
Dollar General to Pay $70,000 to Settle EEOC Disability Discrimination Lawsuit
Source: EEOC, EEOC
The owner-operator of a Georgia Dollar General store will pay $70,000 and provide other significant relief to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.
Thousands of UC workers to strike Wednesday, protesting job outsourcing
Source: Kevin Smith, The Mercury News
The union charges allege the UC has secretly expanded its outsourcing of service and patient care jobs to low-wage contractors, evading its legal disclosure and bargaining obligations.
Millenials complain about age discrimination more than older people: survey
Source: Noah Manskar, New York Post
More than half — 52 percent — of American workers aged 18 to 34 say they have witnessed or experienced ageism in their jobs, according to Glassdoor’s 2019 Diversity and Inclusion Survey released last month.
Comcast poised to beat $20 billion race discrimination case at Supreme Court
Source: Tucker Higgins, CNBC
Comcast looked poised for victory during arguments on Wednesday over a $20 billion racial discrimination case brought by media mogul Byron Allen.
The win may not be final. The justices suggested they may erase the company’s defeat before a lower court, but give Allen another shot to bring his case. If it does so, Allen could ultimately prevail.
November 13, 2019
Baby boomers will be the fastest-growing generation in the workforce next year, Glassdoor claims
Source: Chloe Taylor, CNBC
Baby boomers will be the fastest-growing age category in the U.S. and U.K. workforces next year, according to a new report.
In Case of Emergency: Your Toolkit for Surviving Workplace Discrimination and Harassment
Source: Genie Harrison, Ms. Magazine
Workplace self-care starts with knowing your rights. The effects of harassment, discrimination and retaliation can be devastating. Understanding your rights and knowing what can be done to protect yourself will help you navigate difficult workplace dynamics and, in the best of cases, resolve problems if your employer acts properly.
Nabors Corporate Services and C&J Well Services Settle EEOC Race Discrimination Suit for $1.2 Million
Source: EEOC, EEOC
Nabors Corporate Services, Inc. and C&J Well Services, Inc., two Houston-based oil field services companies, have agreed to pay nine Black employees and one of their White co-workers a total of $1,225,000 to settle a race discrimination and retaliation lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the agency announced today.
Supreme Court's conservatives signal willingness to side with Trump in DACA case
Source: Camilo Montoya-Galvez, CBS News
The Supreme Court's conservative majority on Tuesday signaled a willingness to side with the Trump administration in the legal battle over the fate of a program shielding nearly 700,000 young undocumented immigrants from deportation, a move that would allow the Trump administration to end the Obama-era protections.
McDonald’s Hit With Class Action Suit For Failing To Address Sexual Harassment
Source: Alicia Kelso, Forbes
A class action suit was filed today against McDonald’s for failing to address the “systemic problem” of sexual harassment in its 14,000 restaurants across the country.
November 12, 2019
Black Facebook Workers Write Open Letter to Company: We Are Treated Every Day 'as If We Do Not Belong Here'
Source: Anne Branigin, The Root
One year after a black Facebook employee accused the social media giant of failing its black employees and users, a group of Facebook employees published an anonymous memo saying the culture at the company has only gotten worse for nonwhite workers.
LinkedIn CEO Wants to Curb Sexual Harassment Hidden in Private Messages
Source: Danielle Abril, Fortune
Women are being sexually harassed through private message on LinkedIn. It’s a problem the company’s CEO says he’s well aware of and is trying to fix.
LinkedIn’s CEO Jeff Weiner discussed the issue at a conference in San Francisco hosted by Wired magazine, saying that it is essential for users to “self-police” in order to help the company maintain its service's integrity.
EEOC sues Sprint retailer over alleged sexual assault in Sacramento
Source: Mallory Moench, San Francisco Chronicle
A manager at a Sprint store in Sacramento sexually assaulted a teenage female employee, and the store’s operator, Elite Wireless Group, discriminated against and eventually fired her, a lawsuit filed last week by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleges.
November 11, 2019
Marciano Art Foundation is accused of unfair labor practices
Source: Colin Moynihan, New York Times
Labor organizers in Los Angeles have accused the Marciano Art Foundation, a private museum, of violating federal law by dismissing dozens of employees after they announced that they wanted to form a union
Union Decries VA Response to Lynched Doll Found in Staff Area of Louisiana Facility
Source: Erich Wagner , Government Executive
Employees at the Overton Brooks VA Medical Center have questioned the finding that the person responsible was not an employee, given where the doll was located.
November 8, 2019
Potential Changes to Title VII Protections Against Discrimination 'Because of … Sex'
Source: Stephen L. Korbel and Anna Z. Skipper, The Legal Intelligencer
Title VII makes it an unlawful practice for an employer to “fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any individual, or otherwise to discriminate against any individual with respect to his … sex,” or “to limit, segregate, or classify his employees or applicants for employment in any way which would deprive or tend to deprive any individual of employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affect his status as an employee, because of such individual’s … sex.”
A Federal Appeals Court Rejects Evidence of Age Discrimination By U.S. Army
Source: Patricia Barnes, Forbes
A three-judge panel of the Ohio-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has concluded the U.S. Army did not discriminate or retaliate against two older workers, despite direct evidence to the contrary.
Third Accuser Files EEOC Claim About Former DLA Piper Partner
Source: Dan Packel , The American Lawyer
A third woman who worked in DLA Piper’s Silicon Valley office has come forward with accusations of improper conduct by the firm and Louis Lehot, the influential Silicon Valley rainmaker who recently left the firm amid sexual assault allegations brought by a junior partner.
Bisconti Farms, Inc. and Bisconti Management, Inc. to Pay $200,000 to Settle EEOC Sexual Harassment and Retaliation Suit
Source: EEOC, EEOC
Bisconti Farms, Inc. and Bisconti Management, Inc. (collectively, "Bisconti Farms"), operators of a mushroom farm in Temple, Pa., will pay $200,000 and furnish significant equitable relief to settle a sexual harassment and retaliation lawsuit, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced today.
Post-#MeToo, Ernst & Young Grapples With Diverging Views Of Its Culture
Source: Yuki Noguchi, NPR
There's a culture war playing out at Ernst & Young.
The accounting giant is often held up as a paragon of workplace culture. But it also faces a recent backlash over a training program that, among other things, coached some of its top female executives to wear flattering and "well-cut attire." The episode raises questions about whether — and how much — workplaces have changed after the #MeToo movement.
November 7, 2019
Davis Polk Responds To Racial Discrimination Lawsuit
Source: Kathryn Rubino, Above the Law
The plaintiff...former associate Kaloma Cardwell, who alleges as an African-American he was not provided the same opportunities for career advancement — he says he was routinely left off deal emails and excluded from conference calls — as his white colleagues.
Uber Drivers Protest Rejection Of Labor Law That Would Extend Protections To Millions
Source: Shannon Bond, NPR
Uber drivers showed up at the homes of the company's big investors on Wednesday to protest how the ride-hailing company has made a few people incredibly rich.
Workers in These Careers Retire the Earliest, Study Says
Source: Katie Brockman, The Motley Fool
Early retirement is a dream shared by many but achieved by few. In fact, although half of U.S. workers say they'd like to retire by age 60, according to a survey from TD Ameritrade, only a third expect to be able to do so.
How the Google walkout transformed tech workers into activists
Source: Johana Bhuiyan, Los Angeles Times
A year later, the legacy of the walkout has been far-reaching and complex. Although most of the protesters’ demands remain unmet, their efforts have given rise to a network of worker-led movements both inside Google and in the broader tech industry, marking a new era of tech companies being challenged by their own employees.
November 6, 2019
Feds allege Walmart violated reservist’s employment rights
Source: Karen Jowers , Military Times
The Justice Department has filed suit in federal court against Walmart, Inc., alleging the company violated the law by refusing to hire a reservist because of her upcoming annual two-week training.
Supreme Court Won’t Overturn $1.3 Million Age Discrimination Verdict
Source: Eric Bachman, Forbes
The United States Supreme Court declined to overturn a $1.3 million jury verdict in an age discrimination case from the federal district court in Massachusetts (Rinsky v. Cushman & Wakefield, Case No. 1:16-cv-10403-ADB (D. Mass.)).
McDonald’s HR Boss Resigns After CEO’s Firing
Source: Rachel Sandler, Forbes
McDonald’s announced Monday that Global Chief People Officer David Fairhurst has left the fast food giant following the departure of CEO Steve Easterbrook, who was fired over the weekend for having a consensual relationship with an employee.
News Analysis: Gender bias turned out to be a wonderful indicator of WeWork’s incompetence
Source: Sarah Green Carmichael, Los Angeles Times
Exactly zero people should be surprised by the recent filing of a pregnancy-discrimination lawsuit against WeWork. Bad management and gender bias tend to go together like poison ivy and a rash.
Trump Reverses Obama Stance on Fluctuating Workweek Overtime Pay
Source: Ben Penn, Bloomberg Law
Businesses will have more legal certainty over how to calculate overtime pay under a little-used alternate method reserved for workers with irregular schedules, the Labor Department said today in a proposed rule.
November 5, 2019
Should you date your boss or coworker? How an office relationship might end your career
Source: Joshua Bote, USA Today
Private companies have the right in most states to prohibit worker-manager relationships. There's also social stigma attached specifically to bosses and employees becoming romantically intertwined with one another. Still, the relationship may persist, despite the personal and professional costs attached.
DOL’s Proposed Rule Change Could Stiff Tipped Workers
Source: Patricia Barnes, Forbes
The DOL has proposed a new rule to allow employers to claim the tip credit for workers who spend more than 20 percent of their time performing non-tipped duties.
Lawsuit takes aim at city's Fair Workweek Ordinance
Source: Sarah Zimmerman, Chicago Business
A trade association representing building owners has sued the city in hopes of blocking a comprehensive labor ordinance from taking effect.
The workplace trend that explains why McDonald’s CEO firing was swift
Source: Eric Rosenbaum, CNBC
Former McDonald’s CEO Steve Easterbrook was responsible for some big successes. But whatever value his decisions and acquisitions bring to the company in the future, they couldn’t save him.
How To Make Workplaces More Welcoming For Employees With Disabilities
Source: Andrew Pulrang, Forbes
October was National Disability Employment Awareness Month. It’s a time each year when disability organizations, elected officials, business experts, and journalists discuss the status of disabled people in the job market and workplace.
Verity Property Management to Pay $22,500 to Settle EEOC Discrimination Lawsuit
Source: EEOC, EEOC
Boise-based Verity Property Management, Inc., will pay $22,500 and make substantial changes to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.
In overworked Japan, Microsoft tested a four-day workweek. Productivity soared 40 percent.
Source: Jena McGregor , The Washington Post
Microsoft launched a four-day workweek experiment earlier this year in one of the most unlikely places: Japan. But in a country known for its culture of extreme overwork, the shorter week had a big boost on productivity, the company’s business unit said in a post on its website.
McDonald's Just Fired Their CEO for Consensual Sex
Source: Suzanne Lucas, INC
McDonald's fired its president and CEO, Steve Easterbrook. CEOs come and go, but this one is leaving for consensual sex with an employee.
November 4, 2019
Only 55% of Workers Think They're Saving Enough for Retirement. Here's How to Do Better
Source: Maurie Backman, The Motley Fool
Only 55% of workers today think they're doing an adequate job of socking away funds for their golden years, according to the 2019 Wells Fargo Retirement study. If your savings aren't up to snuff, here are a few critical moves to make immediately.
Younger Workers Report Seeing More Discrimination
Source: Kathryn Dill, The Wallstreet Journal
Different generations experience sexism, racism and ageism at varying levels in office, new poll shows
WeWork hit with EEOC complaint alleging gender discrimination
Source: Catherine Thorbecke, ABC News
The former chief of staff to WeWork's ousted CEO, Adam Neumann, has filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, alleging she experienced pregnancy discrimination, gender discrimination and more during her time at the company.
La Cantera Resort and Spa to Pay Over $2.5 Million to Settle EEOC National Origin Discrimination Suit
Source: EEOC, EEOC
The former operators of the La Cantera Resort and Spa have agreed to pay $2,625,000 to settle a national origin discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.
