Dallas Fort Worth Injury Lawyer Blog

Contact an attorney immediately, and please remember these Sabine Pilot claims are subject to a two-year statute of limitations.

"Sabine Pilot" is the name of a case decided by the Texas Supreme Court in 1985, Sabine Pilot Serv. v. Hauck (Tex. 1985). The Court recognized a narrow exception to the general "at will" doctrine of employment in Texas, and found that an at-will employee may sue his/her employer if he/she is fired for refusing to commit an illegal act.

Keep a file regarding everything that is said or done to you surrounding your termination and keep all of your records related to your employment. These notes and records may prove invaluable in a later lawsuit.

Continue reading "What to Do if You Are Terminated For Refusing to do an Illegal Act" »

A Washington, D.C., salon owner has agreed to a $7 million settlement in a sexual harassment lawsuit filed by one of his employees.

The suit, filed by Jennifer Thong against Andre Chreky, alleges "rough-hewn sexual advances and retaliation when those advances were rebuffed." The advances include attempts at forced intercourse and brutal attacks by Chreky, the suit claims.

Neely Tucker, The Washington Post 08/17/2010
Read Article: The Washington Post

Continue reading "Salon Owner Settles $7M Sexual Harassment Suit" »

The Fulton County Daily Report (7/30, Palmer) reports, "Lawyers watching a sexual harassment case that tested the limits of acceptable workplace behavior won't get to hear what the full 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals thinks of the matter.

The case against Home Depot, heard in a rare en banc session by the full appeals court bench in June, has been settled" following "a joint motion by the parties."

In Corbitt v. Home Depot USA, two male employees "claimed that a male manager made inappropriate sexual overtures to them."

Read Article here.

Continue reading "Home Depot Sexual Harassment Suit Settled" »

Two former female employees of the hedge fund Titan Capital have filed a sexual discrimination suit against the fund's president and other top officials.

Danielle Pecile and Cristina Culicea claim in their suit that they were "repeatedly hit on, cursed at and called names like 'idiot' by the defendants."

Pecile also says in the suit that fund president Russell Abrams asked her on one occasion to have bare-chested pictures of his wife printed from a CD. The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages. Leo Standora , New York Daily News 07/30/2010

Read Article: New York Daily News

Continue reading "Employment Discrimination Lawsuit Filed Against Hedge Fund" »

The AP (7/14) reported, "Novartis will pay up to $152.5 million to potentially thousands of women after a jury found it discriminated against them by paying them less than men, the pharmaceutical company and plaintiffs' lawyers announced Wednesday after a deal was struck. The agreement, which still must be approved by a federal judge in Manhattan, also calls for an additional $22.5 million to be paid for company programs to eliminate discrimination. The settlement covers claims by 5,600 women at the drug company who were part of the class-action lawsuit that resulted in a six-week trial earlier this year."

Bloomberg News (7/14, Van Voris) reported, "The suit was filed in 2004 by Amy Velez and four other women who claimed they faced discrimination over pay and promotion and for pregnancy."

The Wall Street Journal (7/15, Bray) reports that lead plaintiffs' attorney David Sanford said, "Novartis has agreed to a momentous settlement," adding, "the terms of this agreement allow for full compensation of both former and current female field force employees, ensuring that every woman who worked at Novartis over the past eight years has been compensated fairly."

Continue reading "Novartis Settles Employment Discrimination Suit for $152M." »

A California man has filed a lawsuit against his former employer, Coastside Scavenger, claiming that he was wrongfully terminated by new owners because of his "whistleblower" reputation.

Jose Castellanos claims in his lawsuit that after his two sons were fired from Coastside in 2008 for complaining of mistreatment, his bosses began to criticize him and suggest he quit.

He was fired last summer, and says that his boss "went out of her way to malign his reputation to prospective employers." Julia Scott, San Jose Mercury News 07/06/2010
Read Article: San Jose Mercury News

Continue reading "Wrongful Termination Suit Filed Against Trash Hauler" »

A discrimination lawsuit has been filed against Comcast by a former employee who claims that, upon his transfer to the Naples, Fla., office in 2006, he was discriminated against because he is African-American.

Timothy Morrison, who worked for Comcast for 10 years, claims that his bosses in the Naples office created a "pattern of harassing and hostile treatment based on his race," including suggesting he should move back to Chicago to be near "his people."

Morrison also alleges that when he formally complained about the treatment, he was fired. The lawsuit seeks an unspecified amount of damages. Leslie Williams Hale, Naples News 06/23/2010
Read Article: Naples News

Continue reading " Racial Discrimination Lawsuit Filed Against Comcast" »

A former FedEx employee who was awarded damages in a sexual harassment lawsuit against the company will now be able to seek full punitive damages, a federal appeals court ruled.

Charlotte Boswell was awarded $300,000 for lost earnings, $250,000 for emotional distress and $2.45 million in punitive damages for the company's violation of her rights in 2007.

A U.S. district judge cut the punitive damages to $300,000, which is the maximum amount set by federal civil rights law for punitive damages. The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted Boswell a new punitive damages trial, saying "she should have been allowed to present her case for damages under California law, which has no dollar limit." Bob Egelko, San Francisco Chronicle 06/20/2010

Read Article: San Francisco Chronicle

Continue reading "Former Employee Allowed To Seek Full Punitive Damages from FedEx" »

Defense contractor Northrop Grumman has agreed to settle a whistleblower lawsuit brought against them by a former quality assurance manager in 2006.

The lawsuit claimed that the company failed to test electronic parts supplied to the government that would placed in military aircraft and spacecraft and be required to withstand extreme temperatures.

The federal government will receive a $12.5 million settlement and the former manager, Allen Davis, will receive $2.4 million as part of the settlement. W.J. Hennigan, LA Times 06/24/2010

Read Article: LA Times

Continue reading "Whistleblower Suit Settled By Defense Contractor Northrop Grumman" »

The city of Fresno, Calif., has reached a $3.35 million settlement with a local woman who claims she was forced out of the Fresno Fire Department's training academy because of her gender.

Michelle Maher stated in her lawsuit that she was set up to fail by fire training academy supervisors and that her exams were graded unfairly. As part of the settlement, the city will dismiss its appeal. Staff Report, The Fresno Bee 06/12/2010

Read Article: The Fresno Bee

Continue reading "Employment Discrimination Suit Settled In Fresno" »

A $125,000 settlement has been reached in a discrimination lawsuit against a Kansas-based staffing company.

The lawsuit was filed against the Spencer Reed Group, LLC, by a 55-year-old white employee who claimed that she was subjected to harsher working conditions because of her age and race.

She claimed that she was given more work than her co-workers and was forced to provide reports on a weekly basis instead of monthly like the other employees. Also, the lawsuit stated that the plaintiff's bosses often yelled and belittled her in front of the other employees.

As part of the settlement, the company will provide equal employment opportunity training and will post anti-discrimination notices. Staff Report, Kansas City Info Zine 06/13/2010
Read Article: Kansas City Info Zine

Continue reading "Work Discrimination Suit Settled For $125K" »

Just a few weeks after 20-year-old Cassie Smith filed suit against Hooters of America, claiming the restaurant placed her on weight probation, a second waitress has come forward and filed a similar claim, saying she was fired in 2009 for failing to loose sufficient weight.

Hooters officials claim they have a right to be concerned about their employees’ image because they are considered entertainers, not waitresses.

Both lawsuits, however, cite the Michigan Civil Rights Act, which bars employers from discrimination on the basis of religion, marital status, race, age, height and weight. Steve Neavling, Detroit Free Press 06/02/2010
Read Article: Detroit Free Press

Continue reading " 2nd Weight Discrimination Suit Filed Against Hooters Restaurant" »

A Dallas jury awarded Dr. Nassar $3.6 million in a lawsuit he filed against University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center over racial and religious persecution.

According to the lawsuit, Nassar's boss, Dr. Levine, told Nassar that she thought people from the Middle East were lazy and questioned his direct supervisor about his productivity.

Due to the harsh environment created by Levine, Nassar was driven to quite he job, he claims.

By SUE GOETINCK AMBROSE and BROOKS EGERTON / The Dallas Morning News
Read Article: Dallas Morning News

Continue reading "Dallas UT Southwestern Medical Center To Pay $3.6 M In Lawsuit" »

Five years after alerting authorities that she was gang-raped in Iraq, KBR/Halliburton employee Jamie Leigh Jones will finally get her day in court.

After fighting tooth-and-nail in the lower courts to keep the case from going to trial, KBR announced that it was dropping its Supreme Court appeal in the case.

This was less than two weeks after it was awarded a new $2.3 billion logistics contract by the Army. Jones, who says she was raped by coworkers and then imprisoned in a shipping container for three days by KBR staffers, had been barred from pursuing her sexual harassment case in the courts by a provision in her employee contract: The fine print said all such issues must be resolved via the company's own binding arbitration process.

Read the full story here.

Continue reading "KBR Being Brought to Justice" »

Since the start of the recession, a growing number of sexual harassment complaints have come from men. Some 16.4% of all sexual harassment claims—or 2,094 claims—were filed by men in fiscal 2009, up from 15.4%, or 1,869 claims, in fiscal 2006, according to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

While male victims sometimes experience behavior like groping and unwanted sexual advances, employment lawyers say increasingly "locker room" type behavior like vulgar talk and horseplay with sexual connotations have been the subject of claims.

Read full story here at the Wall Street Journal

Continue reading "More Men Make Sexual Harassment Claims " »

A member of the science team for NASA's 2008 Phoenix Mars Lander mission has sued one of the mission's co-investigators, Samuel Kounaves, alleging sexual harassment.

Research assistant Suzanne Young was part of a Tufts University group that helped build the experiments to analyze and characterize the chemical composition of the Martian soil during the NASA mission, led by the University of Arizona and housed in Tucson.

Continue reading "Harassment Lawsuit Filed Against Scientist on Mars Lander Project" »

A former associate plans to file a $50 million lawsuit against Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, accusing the firm of denying her a promotion to partner because she is a lesbian and of doing nothing to stop higher-ups from harassing her, according to the complaint.

The former associate, Julie Kamps, plans to file the lawsuit in federal court in Manhattan. Kamps, who previously filed a less detailed complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, claims that a female partner at Fried Frank sexually harassed her. She also alleges that the firm instructs lawyers to write exaggerated negative performance reviews about associates the firm wants out.

Continue reading "Employee Alleges Harassment, Phony Reviews, in $50 Million Suit Against Firm" »

Atherton has agreed to payt $230,000 to settle a sexual harassment and discrimination lawsuit a former police officer filed against the town and one of its employees.

In the April documents filed in San Mateo County Superior Court, former Atherton police Officer Pilar Ortiz-Buckley accused Public Works Supervisor Troy Henderson of making salacious remarks and grabbing her in the police break room.

City Attorney Wynne Furth said that the town decided to settle early in the process to avoid costly legal fees. The three involved parties signed a settlement agreement in mid-November.

Ortiz-Buckley, 48, suffered back injuries during the alleged June 2008 attack, which prevented her from wearing her police duty belt and made it impossible for her to do her job, according to the lawsuit.

Continue reading "Atherton Settles Sexual Harassment, Discrimination Lawsuit" »

A Miami-Dade jury, sworn to exercise its civic duty, awarded security guard Jackalyn Strachan $150,000 in damages -- for exercising her same civic duty.

The six-person jury found that Miami security firm Hall Investigation Service wrongfully denied wages and fired Strachan for serving as a juror in a murder trial in April 2007.

Continue reading "Miami Woman who Sued Employer Over Jury Duty is Awarded $150,K" »

A radiation oncologist who formerly worked for the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute won a $3 million verdict in federal court on charges that her employer retaliated against her for raising concerns about discrimination.

The jury recommended that Dr. Kristina Gerszten be awarded $1.5 million in back pay from the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, which works with the UPMC Cancer Centers, as well as $827,292 in front pay. But according to Dr. Gerszten's attorney, those amounts are only advisory.

It will be up to U.S. District Judge Arthur J. Schwab to determine what amount the defendant will have to pay.

Continue reading "Doctor Wins Employment Discrimination Lawsuit Against Cancer Institute" »

A nearly $3 million arbitration award was won by a former KBR employee who said she was raped in Iraq.

Tracy K. Barker, wife of a U.S. Army sergeant and the mother of five, was awarded $2.93 million in private arbitration proceedings in Houston.

Continue reading "Nearly $3 M Awarded in KBR Rape Claim" »

A federal jury awarded more than $6.2 million in an age discrimination suit brought by two scientists who said they were fired from their jobs at a Chester County, Pa., chemical manufacturing firm when the company targeted only older workers in layoffs in 2005.

The jury concluded that PQ Corp.'s age discrimination was "willful" -- a finding that leads to an automatic doubling of each plaintiff's back pay award. The jury also awarded compensatory damages -- $2 million to plaintiff Roman Wypart and $1.5 million to plaintiff Bonnie Marcus -- for the emotional damage they suffered as a result of the discrimination.

Lead plaintiffs' attorney Scott B. Goldshaw said he was "gratified that the jury recognized that age discrimination is real and hurts real people."

The weeklong trial in Marcus v. PQ Corp. was the second trial in the case. The first trial, in July, resulted in a hung jury on the claims for three plaintiffs and a rejection of the fourth plaintiff's claims. Prior to the second trial, court records show, PQ settled for an undisclosed sum with plaintiff Ernest Senderov.

Continue reading "2 Scientists Get $6.2 M Award in Age Discrimination Suit" »

The MA state Supreme Judicial Court restored $1 million in punitive damages awarded to a former pharmacist at a Wal-Mart in Pittsfield, who said she was fired after complaining about being paid less than her male colleagues.

The verdict - which also upheld a jury award for more than $700,000 in future wages lost - ends a long battle between Wal-Mart and its onetime employee, Cynthia Haddad, who first sued the retail giant for gender discrimination four years ago.

Continue reading "MA Supreme Court Reinstates Wal-Mart damages" »

The proposed settlement of a pair of lawsuits charging that Eastman Kodak Co. discriminated against African-American employees is now in a judge's hands.

Lawyers for the plaintiffs this week filed a motion asking that U.S. Magistrate Judge Jonathan W. Feldman approve the settlement worked out between the company and the plaintiffs. The filing also requests a hearing on Oct. 23 for final arguments regarding fairness of the settlement.

The lawsuits — one filed in 2004 and the other in 2007 — alleged that Kodak discriminated in regards to pay, promotions, job assignments and layoffs.

Continue reading "$21.4 M Settlement of Kodak Race Discrimination Lawsuits " »

A teacher has settled a discrimination lawsuit against a private school in Anne Arundel County that federal authorities said had fired him because he has the virus that causes AIDS.

In the consent decree approved by U.S. District Judge William D. Quarles Jr. in Baltimore, Chauncey Stevenson is to receive $79,750, but the Chesapeake Academy in Arnold did not admit wrongdoing. Among the actions it must take are steps to teach its supervisors about the Americans with Disabilities Act. The law requires employers to accommodate workers' disabilities.

Continue reading "Teacher with HIV Settles Bias Suit Against Private School" »

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced a major settlement of a discrimination lawsuit under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act against Lowe’s Home Improvement Warehouse, Inc. for $1.72 million and significant remedial relief on behalf of three employees in their twenties who were subjected to a pervasive sexually hostile work environment and retaliated against for complaining about it.

The former employees, two young men and one woman, were subjected to widespread and repeated sexual harassment by male and female managers and coworkers at a Lowe’s store in Longview, Wash. The sexually hostile workplace, which endured for more than six months, included physical and verbal abuse which culminated in one instance of sexual assault.

Continue reading "Rampant Sex Harassment Costs Lowe’s $1.7 M in Settlement of EEOC Lawsuit" »

Two West Texas nurses have been fired from their jobs and indicted with a third-degree felony carrying potential penalties of two-to-ten years' imprisonment and a maximum fine of $10,000.

The nurses, in their 50s and both members of the American Nurses Association/Texas Nurses Association, reported concerns about a doctor practicing at Winkler County Memorial Hospital in Kermit.

They alleged that the doctor improperly encouraging patients in the hospital emergency department and in the rural health clinic to buy his own herbal "medicines," and they thought it improper for him to take hospital supplies to perform a procedure at a patient's home rather than in the hospital.

Read an earlier post.http://www.bne.state.tx.us/

Continue reading "Update: Retaliation Against West Texas Nurses for Whistle Blower Complaint" »

A Winter Park Florida dentist who twice dropped tools down the throat of an elderly patient -- a 90-year-old man who died after the second incident -- is being sued for negligence.

Relatives of Charles K. Gaal Jr. recently filed the suit in Orange County Circuit Court against Dr. Wesley Meyers of Aloma Park Dental.

They accuse Meyers of failing to take precautions to guard against dropping and losing his dental tools down Gaal's throat and failing to handle his tools properly during the second incident, which occurred May 1, 2007.

On Oct. 4, 2006, while he was performing work on Gaal, Meyers dropped an "implant screwdriver tool" down the patient's throat.

Gaal swallowed the tool and two days later, he underwent a colonoscopy. The tool was removed from his intestines, the suit said.

Continue reading "Wrongful Death by Dentist After Tools Lost " »

A federal court jury sided with a Suffolk Park Police officer who claimed she was discriminated against when her employer denied her request for a "light-duty" assignment when she became pregnant in 2007.

Tara Germain, who was given the choice to either work during her pregnancy or take unpaid leave, prevailed on several claims she made against Suffolk County, as jurors found that her civil rights were violated.

"We are really happy," said Janice Goodman, an attorney who argued the case before U.S. District Court Judge Arthur Spatt with Gillian Thomas, an attorney for Legal Momentum, a women's rights group formerly known as the NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund.

"We believe the rights of women have been affirmed a second time on the issue of not forcing a woman to have to choose between her job and having a family," Goodman added, referring to an earlier case against Suffolk County involving pregnant officers.

Continue reading "Jury Finds Pregnant Officer was Discriminated Against" »

A federal agency has been ordered to rehire an ex-worker until an appeals board can hold a hearing on his whistleblower claim that he was fired in retaliation for telling his boss two co-workers illegally shot mountain lions from a government airplane in Nevada.

An administrative law judge granted Gary Strader's motion for reinstatement because Strader presented enough evidence to suggest there is a "substantial likelihood" he will prevail in his case against the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services, where he worked as a professional hunter in northeast Nevada until his firing in April.

Continue reading "Nevada Whistleblower Gets Job Back" »

An East Texas company must pay black workers more than $3 million in back pay as damages in a class action lawsuit charging racial discrimination, a federal judge has ruled.

U.S. District Judge Ron Clark said Lufkin Industries Inc. must pay the workers $3.1 million as well as 5 percent interest to compensate them for acts of discrimination dating to 1994.

A bench trial in 2005 found that the company unlawfully made initial assignment and promotion decisions that discriminated against black workers.

"Lufkin Industries has been profiting for years from its policy of unlawful discrimination," wrote Clark, who succeeded Cobb on the bench in the Eastern District of Texas. "At the same time, as Judge Cobb found, Lufkin's CEO was indulged with a corporate jet and pilot and in 2002 a paycheck three times that of the president of the United States."

Continue reading "Texas Company to Pay $3M to Black Workers " »

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has sued Kmart Corp., alleging that the discount retailer fired an employee at a store after discovering he uses a cane to help him walk and stand.

Alonzo McGlone worked as a greeter at the Kmart store in Norfolk in September 2004, according to the commission, which filed its lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Norfolk. It charged that Kmart discriminated against McGlone and violated the federal Americans with Disabilities Act by refusing to let him use a cane and denying him work because of his disability, a debilitating back impairment known as spinal stenosis.

Continue reading "EEOC Suit Claims Kmart Fired Man for Using a Cane" »

Starbucks agreed to pay a former lead network engineer in Seattle $120,000 plus a mediator's fee to settle a lawsuit that alleges racial discrimination and retaliation "so severe that it required him to take a medical leave of absence."

Victor Washington, who is African-American and worked for Starbucks from September 2006 until May 2008, alleges in the July 2008 lawsuit that a white co-worker made racist comments to him such as repeatedly telling him to "fetch" the co-worker's umbrella and tie his shoes for him. In the lawsuit, Washington says he complained to his supervisor and to Starbucks' human resources department, and that they took no action, although the supervisor increased his workload and gave him undesirable assignments.

Continue reading "Starbucks Pays $120,000 to Settle Racial Discrimination Lawsuit" »

A federal court jury in Denver awarded $3 million to a former United Airlines employee after finding the company retaliated against her for complaining about discrimination.

The jury deliberated about seven hours before reaching a verdict.

Jennifer McInerney, 37, of Centennial lost her job as a United ramp-services supervisor in March 2006 after 12 years with the company. She has a disabled 3-year-old son.

McInerney asked for alternative jobs in May 2005 because she anticipated complications with her pregnancy. She said the request was denied and her son was born 11 weeks premature.

Continue reading "Jury Awards $3 M to United Airlines Employee who Complained of Discrimination" »

Attorneys for 14 female Hayward police officers who said they had faced systematic harassment based on their gender or sexual orientation announced today the case has been settled for nearly $5 million.

The officers had been seeking unspecified damages for discrimination that they said went back to 1982 and continued up through early 2008, said attorney Stan Casper.

Hayward officials said attorneys will determine how the money will be divvied up among the officers.

The lawsuit was settled through the city's insurance companies, which are responsible for paying it.

Continue reading "Hayward CA Police Harassment Lawsuit Settled For $5 M" »

An Arizona woman has filed suit against GoDaddy.com Inc., alleging the Scottsdale company failed to stop a co-worker from sexually harassing her and that it fired her when she complained.

Rachel R. Pearson filed the suit in U.S. District Court for Arizona. She seeks an unspecified amount for back pay, compensation for emotional pain and other losses, and punitive damages.

Go Daddy general counsel Christine Jones denied that Pearson was subjected to sexual harassment or retaliation and said the company intends to vigorously defend itself.

"Go Daddy takes all complaints of employee misconduct seriously. We thoroughly investigated Ms. Pearson's allegations and could not substantiate them," Jones said.

Continue reading "Woman Sues Go Daddy, Claims Harassment And Wrongful Termination" »

A Texas tubing company agreed to pay $175,000 to a former employee it fired less than a month after he complained of racially offensive comments.

The recent agreement settles a lawsuit that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed against Maverick Tube Corp. in 2007 for retaliation, according to the consent decree.

Maverick Tube, which is a supplier of tubes to the energy industry, denies the allegations but entered into the settlement to avoid protracted litigation, according to the agreement.

Karen Gillen Allen, said the allegations were made by a former employee who was dismissed.

Continue reading "Conroe Texas Company Pays $175,000 to Former Employee" »

The late Harris County Constable Glen Cheek regularly referred to women in derogatory and obscene terms, made female employees do his personal shopping, did not properly promote them and fired a female deputy constable for something he would have forgiven a man.

But jurors in the federal sexual harassment and discrimination lawsuit filed by Kimberly Owen also heard Harris County attorney Lina Garcia say Owen was fired solely because she was charged with drunken driving. Garcia said Owen raised the gender allegations later because she won’t take responsibility for her own actions.

Opening statements were made in the case before U.S. District Judge Vanessa Gilmore Monday afternoon. Scott Newar, Owen’s lawyer, said this lawsuit against Harris County is about the way woman are treated in law enforcement throughout the county.

Continue reading "Ex-deputy Fights Harris County, Texas in Discrimination Case" »

A federal jury in Montgomery returned a $5.79 million verdict against Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama and a mid-level manager for sexual harassment, negligence and retaliation.

"The jury awarded double what we were asking for," said Birmingham attorney Alicia Haynes, represented former Hyundai employee Tammy Edwards. "They were upset at the negligence."

The jury, which returned its verdict, awarded $795,000 in compensatory and $5 million in punitive damages against Hyundai. The jury also returned a $10,000 punitive verdict against manager Mike Swindle after a nearly two-week trial before the U.S. District Court.

Continue reading "Jury Rules Against Hyundai for Sexual Harrassment" »

A Middlesex Superior Court judge has rebuked the city manager of Cambridge, saying his "reprehensible" behavior amounted to a systematic campaign to oust a city employee who had filed a discrimination complaint.

Continue reading "Cambridge MA Assessed $4.5 M in Bias Suit" »

Latino workers in California and Texas allegedly punished for speaking Spanish in their workplaces will be granted up to $450,000, free English classes and other relief under a consent decree approved this week in a class-action lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in Los Angeles.

The lawsuit alleged that Skilled Healthcare Group Inc. and affiliated firms, based in Orange County with facilities in six Western and Southern states, enforced an English-only rule against Latinos but not other ethnic groups speaking Tagalog and other languages.

Continue reading "Healthcare Firm Accused of Punishing Spanish-Speakers Settles Suit" »

The Minneapolis City Council voted overwhelmingly to settle a discrimination lawsuit brought by five black police officers against the city, the police department and Chief Tim Dolan.

The council voted 12-1 to pay the officers a total of $740,000 to settle the suit. The city admitted no guilt and will take no further action.

Lt. Don Harris will receive $187,668 from the settlement; Lt. Medaria Arradondo and Sgt. Charlie Adams each will get $187,666; Lt. Lee Edwards will receive $137,000; and Sgt. Dennis Hamilton will get $40,000.

The suit was filed in December 2007, claiming Dolan and other high-ranking police officials passed over the officers for promotions they deserved, discriminated against them because they were black, created a hostile work environment and retaliated against them.

The five officers claimed the department had long discriminated against blacks in virtually every aspect of the organization — hiring, training, promotion, disciplinary practices and overtime opportunities. They said discrimination worsened after Dolan became chief.

A federal jury awarded $2.3 M to a Los Angeles police officer who said she was sexually harassed and gave birth to a stillborn child because of the stress.

Officer Melissa Borck, 45, said she suffered discrimination and abuse while she was at the Los Angeles Police Department's Valley Traffic Division in 1996, and was retaliated against for reporting the harassment to Internal Affairs. The unanimous jury verdict comes a decade after Borck first filed the lawsuit in April, 1999. A mistrial was declared after her first trial in 2007 because of juror misconduct.

Continue reading "ury Awards $2.3 M in LAPD Harassment Case" »

A New Jersey jury has awarded an UPS employee $1 million after finding that his bosses at United Parcel Service retaliated against him after he complained that managers were violating company policies.

In his lawsuit, 51-year-old Michael Battaglia said he was demoted and assigned to the night shift after lodging his complaints in October 2005.

Following a month long trial in state Superior Court in New Brunswick, a jury found that UPS violated New Jersey's anti-discrimination and whistleblower protection laws.

It awarded Battaglia $500,000 for economic losses and $500,000 for emotional distress.

On Aug. 29, 2008 a jury awarded $3.3 million to an emergency medical technician who said her employer transferred her after she complained that she had been sexually assaulted and harassed by a co-worker.

In 2004, Kathy Nieves told management at East Texas Medical Center EMS that she had been harassed at work and assaulted in her home by Jeremy Cox, also an EMT.

Cox denied the allegations and subsequently accused Nieves of harassment. Nieves claimed that in retaliation for her complaints, East Texas reprimanded her, transferred her and precluded her from working in Coffman County.

The defense argued that Nieves and Cox had a consensual sexual relationship and that Nieves was transferred for legitimate business reasons.

The jury sided with Nieves and awarded her $1.8 million for emotional distress and lost wages and $1.5 million for punitive damages.

Nieves v. East Texas Medical Center EMS, No. 69987

Court: 40th District Court, Ellis County

Wal-Mart Stores Inc., will pay $17.5 million to settle a lawsuit claiming the company discriminated against African-Americans in recruiting and hiring truck drivers.

The lawsuit was filed in 2004 by Daryal Nelson, who claimed he was rejected for a truck-driver position because of his race. Nelson filed the suit in federal court in Helena, Arkansas, on behalf of all black applicants who believe they were rejected or deterred from applying for the positions because of race. The lawsuit was given class-action, or group, status in May 2007.

Wal-Mart’s motions to dismiss the case or decertify the class were denied last month.

Continue reading "Wal-Mart to Pay $17.5 M Racial Bias Settlement " »

More workers are being let go as corporate layoffs have accelerated in recent weeks. And more often, people are looking around and complaining that they have been unfairly or improperly dismissed.

Former employees of Lehman Brothers, say they were not given the required 60 days’ pay before their jobs vanished, while Dell is being sued over allegations of age and sex discrimination against workers.

Continue reading "Layoffs Lead To Employee Lawsuits" »

A Travis County jury has awarded a woman $900,000 after finding that she was fired from her job at a state civil rights agency for complaining about discrimination against minorities at the agency.

The jury arrived at the verdict after a six-day trial in a lawsuit that Marilou Morrison filed against the Texas Commission on Human Rights and the Texas Workforce Commission.

The agency that is supposed to enforce civil rights is being hit with basically a million dollar judgment for violating the very statutes they are required to enforce.

Continue reading "Texas Workforce Commission Loses Suit For Wrongful Termination" »

Workers who cooperate with their employers' internal investigations of discrimination may not be fired in retaliation for implicating colleagues or superiors, according to a unanimous Supreme Court ruling.

The court voted to reverse the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' ruling that the anti-retaliation provision of Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act does not apply to employees who merely cooperate with an internal probe rather than complain on their own or take part in a formal investigation.

Continue reading "Supreme Court Rules For Worker Over Retaliation" »

On Dec. 8, 2008, a jury awarded $873,000 to an insurance adjuster who claimed he was fired for cooperating with an FBI investigation.

In 2003, the FBI began investigating fraud allegations made against one of Fred Klecka's co-workers. Klecka claimed that when his managers learned he was cooperating with the FBI, he was told he would be fired if he continued.

Klecka refused to obey his managers and within a few months began receiving poor job evaluations. He alleged he was wrongfully terminated in 2005 for refusing to obstruct the investigation.

Allstate denied that Klecka was told not to cooperate with the FBI and argued he was fired for poor performance.

Klecka v. Allstate Insurance Co., No. 2006-CI-08400

Court: 150th District Court, Bexar County

A Los Angeles jury has ordered Kaiser Permanante to pay $7.5 million in punitive damages to a radiologist who was forced to resign from one the company's hospitals in 2006 after complaining about patient care.

The jury's decision means Kaiser owes the doctor a combined $11.4 million. The same panel earlier in the week awarded the doctor $3.9 million in compensatory damages.

Kaiser says it will appeal the decision, saying it was "shocked and disappointed by the verdict."

Continue reading "Doctor Awarded $11.4 M For Wrongful Termination" »

A security guard who was fired after failing a hearing test was awarded $257,048 in a disability discrimination lawsuit against the U.S. Attorney General.

The man aged 61, lost his job at the federal courthouse in Victoria because he could not pass the required hearing test. He sued under the Americans with Disabilities Act, alleging a U.S. Marshal Service rule that banned use of hearing aids during testing was discriminatory.

Continue reading "Fired Security Guard Awarded $257K in Disability Discrimination " »

Two inspectors who were fired from the inspector general's office at the Texas Education Agency are suing the agency, claiming wrongful termination after they tried to investigate fraud and waste in the TEA, according to officials.

The men want to be reinstated and are seeking unspecified damages. The lawsuit contends that the alleged retaliation against and firings of the two men violated their rights under the state's whistleblower law and also violated their free speech rights under the Texas Constitution.

According to their lawsuit, they were systematically prevented from investigating fraud, waste and misuse, including allegations of:

— Falsification of student attendance records.

— Contractors who "may have been influenced to overcharge TEA and/or school districts."

— A "suspect contract" involving the commissioner of education and an education service center.

— Violations of law regarding job openings.

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Four pharmacists at the University of Texas Medical Branch filed suit claiming that the medical institution is discriminating against them because of their nationalities.

The pharmacists claim that their superiors used their Nigerian origins as a reason to overlook them for raises, compensation and promotion, despite each individual's education and professional work histories.

The plaintiffs complained that their discrimination was on the basis of their national origin; also stating that the plaintiffs are American citizens.
The complaint said the Pharmacy Department gave the plaintiffs 1 percent raises while their colleagues received two percent raises.

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A federal appeals court denied former employees of EMC Corp. class-action status in their complaint against the company claiming sexual discrimination.

This means that the plaintiffs will have to pursue their complaints on an individual basis. The two plaintiffs had each worked in EMC's Chicago-area sales force from 1999 to 2003. They filed their suit in 2004 after they had lost their jobs.

The plaintiffs and 15 other former salesmen and women have described company-paid visits to strip clubs, demeaning sexual remarks or retaliation against women who complained about the atmosphere. Three women have said male managers sometimes unfairly removed women from accounts they developed and replaced them with men.

Read the complaint here:Download file

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According to a new lawsuit filed by four former human-resources managers recent layoffs at Dell unfairly targeted women and workers over age 40, and the company discriminates against women in pay and promotions,

The four former HR executives at Dell are seeking US$500 million in a class-action lawsuit filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The four women alleged that the company and its "old boy network" discriminated against women in pay, job placement, promotions and layoffs.

Dell in May 2007 announced plans to lay off about 8,800 workers, about 10 percent of its workforce. Those layoffs unfairly targeted women and older workers, and more than 80 percent of Dell's upper management is now male, the lawsuit claims.

Continue reading "Dell Sued For Wrongful Termination" »

A Cleveland jury awarded the largest verdict in Ohio history -- $46.6 million -- to a man who they said was wrongfully fired last year.

Ronald Luri, 55, alleged that Republic Services Inc. of retaliation and of forging documents critical of his job performance after he refused to fire three of his employees -- all about 60 years old -- on the grounds that such actions would constitute age discrimination.

The jury awarded Luri $3.5 million as compensation for his lost wages as general manager of Republic's Cleveland division, and $43.1 million in punitive damages as punishment for the company's treatment of Luri.

Continue reading "Boss Awarded $46.6 Million " »

In this case, black Secret Service agents sued the Secret Service alleging racial bias and a glass ceiling mentality at the agency.

The judge presiding over the case, has already sanctioned the agency three times for dragging its feet in handing over racially charged e-mails shared by white Secret Service supervisors and for failing to search for documents as ordered by the court. She has also reprimanded government lawyers after they revealed that a paralegal may have burned some documents that were ordered by the court.

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