Part 1 of 2: My Sit-Down Interview With Former EEOC General Counsel David Lopez
According to a recent decision of the European Court of Justice (ECJ), employers may prohibit employers from wearing any visible sign of political, ideological, or religious conviction in the workplace under narrow...more
On June 11, 2021, Oregon Governor Kate Brown signed into law House Bill 2935, also known as the CROWN Act (Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair), joining several other states in explicitly prohibiting...more
On November 17, 2020, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) published for public comment a proposed update to its Compliance Manual Section on Religious Discrimination for public comment, which has not been...more
Health Care Company Denied Religious Accommodation for a Correctional Nurse To Wear a Scrub Skirt, Federal Agency Charges - SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Tennessee-based Wellpath, LLC, a provider of health services in correctional...more
I am an HR manager for a boutique beauty supply shop based in Atlanta, Georgia. We are planning to expand into new storefronts in both San Diego, California and Brooklyn, New York. We have a standard grooming policy because...more
Adding to the list of updates for employers in New York state, a recently-signed bill expressly prohibits employment discrimination based on religious attire and facial hair. The bill adds another amendment to the New York...more
A new amendment to the New York State Human Rights Law expressly prohibits workplace discrimination based on religious attire, clothing, and facial hair. New York employers should review their current policies and work with...more
From workplace dress policies to collecting an employee’s fingerprints, as we wind down 2017, here’s a recap of new workplace laws—and helpful reminders—that affected Illinois employers this year: Updates to the Illinois...more
On August 11, 2017, Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner signed into law Public Act 100-100, known as the “Religious Garb Law.” The law amends the Illinois Human Rights Act (“IHRA”) by clarifying the scope of protection for...more
Security Firm Forced Out Guard for Complaining About Racial Insults, Federal Agency Charges - BALTIMORE - MVM Inc., an Ashburn, Va.-based diversified security services firm, violated federal law when it stopped...more
Employee Not Permitted to Wear Skirt Instead of Pants, Federal Agency Charges - DETROIT - Sleneem Enterprises, LLC, a franchise operator of Tim Horton's Café and Bake Shop in Romulus, Mich., violated federal law by...more
Michael Schmidt, Vice Chair of Cozen O’Connor’s Labor & Employment Department, discusses current employment law news, trends, developments and guest analysis. This episode presents the first of two parts of a timely and...more
PART 2, Continued from PART 1, posted on June 26, 2017. What about wearing religious symbols at work? Is this subject to a specific legal framework?...more
The highest court of the European Union recently issued two judgments allowing employers to ban the visible wearing of political, philosophical or religious signs at the workplace (Judgment of the Court of Justice of the...more
House for Whistleblowers Act - Enacted Legislation - The House for Whistleblowers Act that has become effective as of July 1, 2016, introduces legal protection for whistleblowers and provides for the formation...more
There Is No Implied Term Waiving the Obligation To Repay a Loan in a Voluntary Redundancy Situation - Employers who advance sums to employees, such as relocation costs, will often try to claw back those sums in the event...more
Due to the recent terrorist attacks and headlines on religious extremism across Europe, the question of restricting religious expression in the workplace is becoming more prevalent for French employers. Employers would agree...more
On March 14, 2017, the Court of Justice of the European Union (“ECJ”) issued a significant ruling clarifying when an employer may prohibit employees from wearing visible signs of their religious beliefs in the workplace. The...more
On March 14, 2017, the European Court of Justice issued decisions in two cases addressing the delicate legal and political issue of wearing signs of religious belief at work. Most media outlets and commentators who...more
Last minute decider – incapacity dismissal without considering new evidence was disability discrimination - The Court of Appeal in O'Brien v Bolton St Catherine's Academy has reinstated a Tribunal decision that the...more
Religious discrimination claims by a delivery driver for a catering company who was terminated the day after being sent home for wearing a religious head covering survived summary judgment due to the temporal proximity...more
In Achbita v G4S Secure Solutions NV (Case C-157/15) and Bougnaoui v Micropole SA (Case C-188-15), two Advocate Generals (AG) of the European Court of Justice provided conflicting opinions when considering whether bans on...more
Our friends at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission have issued a Fact Sheet for young workers on religious discrimination in the workplace, which brought me back to the EEOC’s older Q&A and Best Practices on religious...more
Restaurant Fired Muslim Employee Because of Her Required Religious Garb, Federal Agency Charges - PHILADELPHIA - Rotten Ralph's, a popular Philadelphia restaurant, violated federal law when it refused to allow a server...more
The U.S. Supreme Court just issued its much-awaited religious discrimination decision in EEOC v. Abercrombie & Fitch, 575 U.S. ___ (June 1, 2015) (No. 14-86). Samantha Elauf applied for a job with A&F and was denied the job...more