The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a suit accusing Indiana’s Lake County of violating the Age Discrimination in Employment Act by firing workers over the age of 65 whose insurance premiums threatened to destroy its budget. The court determined the age of the workers was incidental to their […]
Protecting Access to Care Act – Passed by the House
On June 28, 2017, the U.S. House of Representatives passed medical tort reform legislation intended to help lower the cost of health insurance by lessening the financial burden of medical lawsuits. The House passed the Protecting Access to Care Act, H.R. 1215, which implements medical malpractice reform by capping plaintiff non-economic damages at $250,000 for […]
EEOC SETTLES DREADLOCK CASE AS A PROTECTED RELIGIOUS EXPRESSION
A common workplace dispute involves dress code polices and deviations from dress and grooming standards. These disputes often result in a religious discrimination suit claiming violation of a protected religious expression.
Illinois Employers Can Be Liable for Heinous Crimes Committed by Their Supervisor Off Premises
An employer can be sued for a supervisor’s murder and rape of one of its employees, which took place while the employee was with the supervisor at an out-of-state wedding, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals held in the recent case of Anicich v. Home Depot, 2017 U.S. App. LEXIS 5202. The liability hinged on […]
Illinois Has Already Amended its Employee Sick Leave Act
On January 1, 2017, the Illinois Employee Sick Leave Act went into effect. It requires employers to allow employees to use their personal sick leave benefits for absences due to an illness, injury or medical appointment of the employee’s child, spouse, sibling, parent, mother-in-law, father-in-law, grandchild, grandparent or stepparent. The same terms would apply as […]
2017 Employment Case to Watch – Seventh Circuit Court To Rule On Sexual Orientation Discrimination Claim
Neither the US Supreme Court nor any federal circuit appellate court has held that discrimination based on sexual orientation is prohibited by Title VII. Title VII prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin. The Seventh Circuit, as well as several other Appellate Courts, have long held that Title VII does […]
EEOC Focus in 2017 – Employers Beware
The EEOC announced its Strategic Enforcement Plan for the fiscal years 2017 to 2021 which outlines the areas upon which the EEOC will focus its litigation and investigation resources in the next four years. Employers should anticipate that the EEOC will be aggressively prosecuting discrimination and other violations that affect the most vulnerable employees, including […]
Businesses Cannot Discriminate Against Transgender Employees
Transgender bathroom rights have been in the spotlight this year. The nation’s schools have been grappling with the issue of which locker rooms should transgender students be allowed to use. Businesses have also been drawn into the issue as they try to avoid gender discrimination in the workplace. Target stores recently made a public […]
Illinois’ 6 Person Jury Unconstitutional
Approximately one year after a public law went into effect limiting the size of a civil jury to 6 persons, the Illinois Supreme Court has deemed the act unconstitutional.
Employer Use of Covenants Not To Compete Threatened By New Law
Employees given access to the trade secrets, customer lists and other confidential materials vital to the operation of a business can easily use that information against the interests of their former employer when their employment comes to an end. Covenants not to compete have been used by businesses to protect themselves from competition from former […]