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EEOC Sees #MeToo Uptick, Regulatory Agenda Released

By Robin Shea

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently released preliminary figures on sexual harassment activity for Fiscal Year 2018, which ended September 30. The EEOC’s figures indicate an increase in sexual harassment charges and EEOC lawsuits, and a dramatic increase in the amount paid to settle sexual harassment charges. Then, last week, the Trump Administration issued its regulatory agenda for Fall 2018, which contains a number of labor and employment-related matters.

EEOC #MeToo uptick

The following are highlights of the EEOC’s recently released preliminary numbers on sexual harassment for Fiscal Year 2018:

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Is the EEOC Trying To Require Unforeseeable Intermittent Leave As a Reasonable Accommodation Under the ADA (Again)?

By Joseph S. Murray, IV

The EEOC filed two lawsuits in the past couple of months that show one of two things: (1) massive companies are cruel and heartless, with HR Departments that don’t understand the ADA, or (2) the EEOC, despite its own statements in guidances and regulations, continues to believe that the ADA allows employees to take repeated, unforeseeable intermittent leave.[1]

In August, the EEOC filed a lawsuit against Macy’s, Inc., alleging Macy’s fired an employee with asthma for a one-day absence due to complications arising from her disability. EEOC Sues Macy’s For Disability Discrimination (Aug. 16, 2017). In late September, the EEOC filed a lawsuit against Whole Foods Market Group, Inc. alleging that Whole Foods terminated an employee with polycystic kidney disease after she missed work two times in December 2015, due to hospitalizations related to her kidney disease. Whole Foods Market Sued by EEOC for Disability Discrimination (Sep. 28, 2017). In both cases, the EEOC alleges that the companies violated the ADA by failing to modify their leave and absentee policies as reasonable accommodations to allow the employees to take leave related to their disabilities.

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Seventh Circuit Finds That Sex Discrimination Includes Sexual Orientation

Labor & Employment Law Section

By Sean F. Herrmann

Practitioners in our field have grown accustomed to seeing others’ dismay as they discover that Title VII does not bar sexual orientation discrimination. “That can’t be true—it’s 2017!” For decades, the prevailing belief, and reality, was that employers could discriminate against employees on the basis of their sexual orientations with relative impunity and the wronged employees would generally have no legal recourse. Hardened employment lawyers got used to this, but for most people this situation was nearly impossible to comprehend.

That common-sense disbelief has finally led somewhere. On April 4, 2017, the full 7th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, in an 8-3 decision, ruled that sex discrimination extends to sexual orientation. The case is Hively v. Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana, No. 15-1720, (7th Cir. Apr. 4, 2017) (https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/3536022/Hively-Opinion.pdf_) and we should get to know it.

Kimberly Hively, the plaintiff-appellant, was a part-time, adjunct professor at Ivy Tech Community College. She was, as the court put it, “openly lesbian.” Hively applied for six full-time positions and received none of them. Ivy Tech eventually decided not to renew her existing contract. Without the assistance of counsel, Hively filed an EEOC Charge that bluntly stated, “I believe I am being discriminated against based on my sexual orientation. I believe I have been discriminated against and that my rights under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 were violated.”

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House Bill 2 Repealed But Challenges Remain for LGBTQ Community

By Kevin Murphy

The repeal of House Bill 2 ends a year of high drama in The Old North State, but many challenges remain for the LGBTQ community. Gone is the clause prohibiting anyone from using a restroom other than that which corresponds to their birth certificate. But also missing is any protection affirmatively granting transgender, genderqueer, and gender nonconforming people the right to use the restroom corresponding to their gender identity.

This vacuum is a return to the status quo pre-HB2. For publicly owned facilities, gone is the worry that using the restroom is against the law. Without any legal protection, however, the simple act of using the restroom continues to be dangerous in light of potential harassment or physical aggression from others in the bathroom.

As to private employers, it remains legal in North Carolina to deny someone employment or access to public accommodations on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity following this repeal. Local governments are powerless to provide otherwise until Dec. 1, 2020.

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EEOC Charlotte District Office Pilots Online Inquiry System

From the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission:

The Charlotte District Office of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is one of five offices that will pilot the EEOC Online Inquiry and Appointment System, the district office announced this week. The system launched on March 13, 2017, and will allow people who live or work within 100 miles of the district office the ability to electronically submit an inquiry and schedule an in-person interview. The initial inquiry and interview are key initial steps for individuals seeking to file a charge of discrimination with the EEOC.

The EEOC receives about 200,000 inquiries per year through the mail, in person and by phone, and about 90,000 of those inquiries become formal charges of discrimination filed with the agency, making the charge-filing process the agency’s most common interaction with the public. This new online system is part of the EEOC’s ACT Digital initiative to improve service to the public, streamline the administrative process, and reduce the use of paper submissions and files.

People can access the Online Inquiry and Appointment System at https://publicportal.eeoc.gov/Portal/ or from the EEOC’s website at https://www.eeoc.gov/employees/online_inquiry.cfm. The agency plans to evaluate the public’s experience with the new system prior to a nationwide rollout later this fiscal year.

“The Charlotte District Office is pleased to be one of the offices selected for the rollout of the Online Inquiry and Appointment System,” said EEOC Charlotte District Director Reuben Daniels, Jr. “We recognize that more than ever online systems are being used to request services and to conduct business. This system is a way for us to increase our interaction with, and be accessible to, the public we serve. We are available to answer questions and respond to feedback from users and can give presentations on the system for stakeholder organizations. I am confident this system will be as well received as the other phases of ACT Digital.”

The EEOC advances opportunity in the workplace by enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov. Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.

EEOC Publishes Guidance On Accommodations For Mental Health Conditions And Finalizes New EEO-1 Reporting Form

mcknightmichaelBy Michael D. McKnight

The EEOC published two items last week of interest to employment counsel:

First, in the September volume of its Digest of Equal Employment Opportunity Law, the EEOC provided some rare insight into the way it views discrimination on the basis of mental health conditions under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act.  Although the publication is aimed at government agencies, the guidance details the types of accommodations the EEOC expects of employers for employees or applicants with mental health conditions.

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EEOC v. Catastrophe Management Solutions: Title VII Does Not Prohibit Race Discrimination Based On Mutable Characteristics

Murray,JoeJoseph S. Murray IV

In the 50 years since Congress enacted Title VII, scientists, contemporary thinkers, and society in general have reassessed the concept of race. No longer do we view race solely in terms of biology (immutable characteristics). We now understand that race includes social context, culture, and life experiences (mutable characteristics). While society’s understanding of race has changed, Title VII’s original definition — or lack thereof — remains stuck in 1964. Whether a racial characteristic is mutable or immutable matters, as the Court of Appeals for the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit recently reminded the EEOC: Title VII only protects against discrimination based on immutable characteristics. EEOC v. Catastrophe Mgmt. Solutions, No. 14-13482, 2016 U.S. App. LEXIS 16918 (11th Cir. Sep. 15, 2016).

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Update From the EEOC: New Charge-Handling Procedures

Nicholson,Travis (2)By Travis Nicholson

EEOC has implemented new procedures to be followed in all of our offices for the submission and release of position statements. The procedures apply to EEOC requests for position statements to employers made after Jan. 1, 2016. The purpose of the new procedures is to advance investigations by facilitating more pertinent information from both parties, including a response from the charging party.

An effective position statement is clear, concise, complete and responsive. EEOC recommends these practices for employers:

  • Submit position statements that are fact-based and thorough;
  • Ensure that the position statement focuses on the allegations in the charge;
  • Provide relevant documentation, evidence, and/or information that supports the employer’s position;
  • Segregate confidential information in attachments, including personally identifiable information, sensitive medical information, confidential financial information, etc.

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