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How An Employer’s Misleading Statements Can Be Evidence of Discrimination

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
08/13/2019
NLRB, Pretext
Two cases decided this month demonstrate how an employer’s false or inaccurate statements can bolster employees' claims that their employer engaged in unlawful discrimination. Sykes v. Fed Ex Freight East, No. 2:17-cv-13189 (E.D. Mich. 8/3/19) In this case, a supervisor’s misrepresentation or misapplication of a workplace policy led the district court to decide that the employer arguably discriminated against an employee because of his...
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D.C. Court of Appeals Finds That Perceived-Disability Discrimination Claim May Succeed

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
08/07/2019
Disability & Leave, Employment Discrimination, Pretext
Anti-discrimination laws often protect both individuals with actual disabilities and those whose employer perceives (regards) as disabled.  Whether an employer perceives an employee as disabled, however, can be a complicated matter, as a case decided last week by the District of Columbia Court of Appeals illustrates.  Abdul-Azim v. Howard University Hospital, No. 17-CV-453 (D.C. Ct. App. 8/1/19). Abdul-Azim worked as a cardiology...
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Fourth Circuit Rejects Employee’s Claim of Mexican Heritage Bias

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
07/24/2019
Direct Evidence, Hostile Work Environment, National Origin, Pretext
Direct, qualification, and comparator evidence, oh my!  In a recent decision, the Fourth Circuit recounted the ways in which a former utility distribution serviceman failed to prove discrimination in violation of Title VII and Section 1981.  Matias v. Elon University, No. 18-2507 (4th Cir. 7/22/19) (unpublished). Matias, who is Mexican, worked for Elon University from 1999 to 2016.  After being promoted to utility distribution...
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Hospital Dodges Discrimination Claim Despite “Unfair” Termination

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
06/06/2019
Pretext, Race Discrimination
Peggy Gordon worked for Holy Cross Hospital Germantown, Inc. from April 2012 until February 2017.  Gordon had a spotless employment record until an incident on February 22, 2017.  That evening, when Gordon went to draw blood from a patient, the patient refused to let her do so and asked for another nurse.  Gordon stopped the procedure, apologized to the patient, and left the room.  She also reported to the charge nurse that the patient was upset...
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Fourth Circuit Holds That Employer’s Shifting Story Is Evidence Of Pretext

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
04/26/2019
Pretext, Race Discrimination, Retaliation
To prevail in an employment discrimination case, the plaintiff is required to present evidence of pretext by his or her (former) employer.  What exactly does pretext mean, though, at a practical level? The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals recently explored this concept in holding that a former trash truck driver was entitled to go to trial based on sufficient evidence that his former employer’s proffered reason for terminating him was a...
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A Case of Pregnancy and Pretext

Kollman & Saucier
Kollman & Saucier
05/23/2018
Employment Discrimination, Pregnancy Discrimination, Pretext, Sex Discrimination
How do courts handle cases of alleged pretextual behavior designed to cover up discriminatory actions? A recent Tenth Circuit decision sheds a little light on this issue. Fassbender v. Correct Care Solutions, LLC, No. 17-3054 (10th Cir. May 15, 2018). Alena Fassbender worked for Correct Care Solutions (CCS) as a medication aide at a Kansas detention center.  Fassbender was pushing her medication cart down one of the center’s cell blocks on April...
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