In its first all-virtual/remote video-cast hearing, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) discussed workplace civil rights implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for employees and employers. (Transcript of the April 28, 2021 hearing is available here.) During the hearing, Chairwoman Charlotte Burrows acknowledged that the EEOC must help employers navigate the new workplace landscape created
EEOC
Court Excludes EEOC Determination Letter That Contained Factual Inaccuracies and Conclusions of Law
Courts regularly act as gatekeepers in determining what evidence juries are entitled to hear at trial. In Nuccio v. Shell Pipeline Co., LP, a federal district court barred an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) determination letter because its probative value was outweighed by its prejudice. No. 19-446-WBV-DPC (E.D. La. Dec. 11, 2020). Nuccio highlights an…
EEOC FY 2020 Annual Performance Report: Recoveries Up, But Fewer Lawsuits Filed
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Annual Performance Report (APR) shows a substantial decrease in the number of lawsuits filed by the agency. However, the APR shows a dramatic increase in the amount of monetary recoveries by the EEOC in litigation compared to FY 2019.
Click here to read the full…
President Biden Names Charlotte Burrows as EEOC Chair
One day after President Joe Biden’s inauguration, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced that he has named current EEOC Commissioner Charlotte A. Burrows Chair of the EEOC and Commissioner Jocelyn Samuels Vice Chair of the EEOC.
Click here to read the full article on the Jackson Lewis website.
Florida Jury Awards Former University Registrar $310,500 In Retaliation Suit
A jury recently returned a $310,500 verdict in favor of a former University of South Florida employee on her retaliation claim against the University. DeBose v. USF Board of Trustees, et al, No. 8:15-cv-02787 (M.D. Fla. Sept. 26, 2018). The former employee, Angela DeBose, claimed she was retaliated against because she had filed internal…
Jury Award of Emotional Distress Damages Must Be Reduced by Millions, Judge Rules
A federal judge in New York has ruled that a plaintiff could recover only a small portion of the $2.5 million a jury awarded him, granting the defendant’s request for the reduction. Saber v. New York State Department of Financial Services, No. 1:15-cv-05944 (S.D. N.Y. July 20, 2018). Plaintiff Nasser Saber, who is Muslim, had…
Illinois Jury Rejects Transgender Worker’s Discrimination Claim
A federal jury in Illinois has rejected a transgender employee’s claim that she was discriminated against and illegally fired after she told her employer that she was transitioning.
In 2016, the EEOC filed a lawsuit against Rent-A-Center East, Inc., alleging the company discharged Megan Kerr illegally in 2014, after over a year’s worth of…