An Iowa Department of Human Services caseworker was in court alleging that, over a period of several years, supervisors at the agency engaged in sexual harassment in the workplace. The employee claims that the harassment continued despite her repeated complaints. Fortunately, the employee documented incidents of the alleged sex discrimination – what was said and… [Read More]
What Constitutes Workplace Sexual Harassment?
A common misconception regarding sexual harassment is that an isolated incident of inappropriate conduct is enough to show sexual harassment has occurred. In reality, for words or actions to constitute sexual harassment, the harassment must be severe or pervasive enough that it interferes with a victims work environment, affecting the terms of their employment, or… [Read More]
Proposed Laws Offer More Protections to Employees
Employers and their employees will likely see new and amended workplace laws and rules in 2021 and beyond. If signed, the Paycheck Fairness Act and the Equality Act will help limit discrimination on the basis of sex in the workplace. Sex Discrimination Workplace Sex discrimination in the workplace can include anything from sexual harassment to… [Read More]
HIV / AIDS Discrimination
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects individuals with disabilities from workplace discrimination. Someone is considered as having a disability if they have a physical and mental impairment that substantially limits major life activities. HIV, either asymptomatic or symptomatic, is considered a physical impairment that limits one or more major life activity and is therefore… [Read More]
Highest Court Prohibits Sexual Orientation Discrimination
In a victory for LGBT workers across the nation, the Supreme Court ruled Monday that sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination are prohibited under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex under federal law. Although a number of states, including Iowa, have long prohibited sexual orientation employment… [Read More]
Is Saying “OK Boomer” at Work Age Discrimination?
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) as well as other state law and federal laws prohibit age discrimination in the workplace. At the federal level, the ADEA prohibits employers from discrimination against employees and job applicants who are at least 40 years old, which means that workers are protected at every phase of the… [Read More]
Sexual Orientation Discrimination Lawsuit
A St. Louis police officer was recently awarded nearly 20 million dollars in a sex discrimination lawsuit against his employer. The officer, who had more than a decade of experience on the force, was allegedly told to “tone down his gayness” to increase his chances of promotion within the department because the staff “had a… [Read More]
Employee Trade Secret and Non-Compete Agreement Violations
Earlier this month, an employee of a Midwest manufacturing firm was sentenced to over a year in prison and a $100K fine for stealing trade secrets from his company before leaving to work for a competitor. Employed as a salesperson, quality assurance manager, and plant metallurgist at a cast iron manufacturer in Illinois, the employee… [Read More]
Employment Discrimination Based on Age
Following allegations of systematic age discrimination, Google recently agreed to pay $11 million to settle a class action lawsuit brought by hundreds of plaintiffs who said the big tech company violated the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). The ADEA prohibits discrimination against persons 40 years of age or older from discrimination on the basis… [Read More]
Iowa Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Workplace Discrimination
All Americans enjoy a basic set of rights in the workplace under federal law. Some states take it a step further, offering additional protections against sexual harassment and sex discrimination at the state level that the federal law does not cover. Fortunately for Iowans, Iowa law has additional prohibitions against employment discrimination that do not… [Read More]
