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Harassment

Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD) Publishes Proposed New Guidelines on Harassment in the Workplace
March 6, 2024
Believe it or not, the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination has never issued any formal guidance about harassment in the workplace other than sexual harassment.  All of that is about to change.
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EEOC Releases Proposed Updated Guidance on Workplace Harassment
October 24, 2023
The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has issued proposed updated guidance called “Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace.”
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Lessons from the World Cup – Gender Equity Goes Far Beyond Pay
August 24, 2023
One of the most shocking moments in the recent Women’s World Cup came after the final, when the head of the Spanish soccer federation kissed one of the victorious Spanish players
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Can Rap Music in the Workplace Create a Hostile Work Environment?
October 27, 2022
Is the playing of obscene and misogynistic rap music in the workplace discriminatory on the basis of sex if it offends women?  A former Tesla employee has asked the U.S. District Court for Nevada to answer “yes” to that question
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Extraordinary Workplace Misconduct: The Case of the Somnambulant Sales Rep
August 12, 2022
Should an employee who, while at a convention, knocks on a coworker’s hotel room door, enters, then heads to the coworker’s bed wearing nothing but a robe be fired, even if the employee claims to have been sleepwalking at the time?
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Chicago Employers Get Ready: New Harassment and Bystander Training Obligations Among Key Changes to Chicago Human Rights Ordinance
June 3, 2022
On April 27, 2022, the Chicago City Council approved several substantive amendments to the sexual harassment provisions of the Chicago Human Rights Ordinance. The key changes implemented by the City Council are outlined here.
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Massachusetts: No, a request for a severance package is not a resignation. Yes, non-supervisory sexual harassment claim can be defeated by adequate investigation.
March 24, 2022
What counts as a resignation in Massachusetts? Under what circumstances might a resignation not actually be a resignation at all?
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Congress Passes Bipartisan Legislation Amending the Federal Arbitration Act as it Relates to Sexual Harassment or Sexual Assault Claims
February 22, 2022
In a showing of bipartisan unity, the United States Senate passed H.R. 4445 on a voice vote Thursday, February 10, 2022. Senate passage means the bill will be sent to President Joe Biden for signature into law, likely within the next few weeks.
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New Law Lets Sexual Harassment Claimants Get Out of Arbitration Agreements
February 10, 2022
A new federal law allows employees to avoid arbitration agreements with respect to sexual harassment or sexual assault claims.
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Employers – Do Not Ignore Confederate Flag Sightings in the Workplace!
October 20, 2021
In Moore v. Conn. Dept. of Corrections, a federal court judge recently denied an employer’s efforts to have an employee’s hostile work environment claim thrown out. The employee alleged that she walked past another employee’s Confederate flag license plate at least 100 times when entering and exiting the workplace.
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Ontario: Extraordinary Circumstances call for Extraordinary Remedies
March 9, 2021
In Caplan v Atas, 2021 ONSC 670 (“Caplan”), following a series of protracted, abhorrent campaigns of harassment and defamation committed by the defendant, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (the “Court”) expanded the common law in Ontario by recognizing a new tort: harassment in online communications.
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What Is Fragmentation of Harassment Claims? The EEOC Speaks
February 25, 2021
In my spare time (which has been limited during the pandemic, given the whirlwind of COVID-19-related legal developments), I like to peruse the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s quarterly Digest of Equal Employment Opportunity Law.
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