A former vice principal at Ballard High School in Seattle, WA was awarded over $600 thousand in damages following a jury trial in King County Superior Court based on allegations that she was subjected to sexual harassment. The former vice principal, Glenda Williams, claimed that she was subjected to repeated overtures by Ballard High… Read More
Posts Categorized In: Workplace Discrimination
ADEA Permits Retaliation Claims Against a Federal Employer
Terry Whitman was employed by the Federal Aviation Administration as a Flight Data Specialist. He sued the FAA for violations of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (“ADEA”), 29 U.S.C. § 633a et seq. when it promoted a student intern to a full-time salaried position which he sought, and when it denied his request… Read More
Compensatory Damages For Pain and Suffering Not Available Under ADEA
In a recent case, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals reaffirmed that damages for emotional distress are not available to an employee suing under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. In this particular case, the court held that the employee failed to state a claim under the ADEA because he made no claim for pecuniary benefits related to his… Read More
Washington Public Lands Commissioner Addresses Sexual Harassment Allegations
Washington’s public lands commissioner, Doug Sutherland, is in political hot water after documents recently surfaced showing that he inappropriately touched a new female employee in his own department. Public records show that in January 2005, Sutherland touched the young woman’s back and made comments that she and at least one other individual overheard and found… Read More
COURT: Pregnancy Discrimination Act Protects Employee Who Had Abortion
The Third Circuit Court of Appeals in the first case of its kind has ruled that the Pregnancy Discrimination Act protects an employee who has had an abortion. The Pregnancy Discrimination Act states that it prohibits discrimination because of “pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.” The court reasoned that the language “related medical conditions”… Read More
Longview Fibre Settles EEOC Disability Discrimination Claim for $175k
Longview Fibre has agreed to settle a charge of disability discrimination for $175,000 according the EEOC. An article about the case appears here. According to published reports, the company rescinded a job offer made to the claimant, Scott Harshbarger, after he suffered a spinal injury that required pain medication, even though the condition did not… Read More
Washington Company Rejects Ban on Sexual Orientation Discrimination
An employment law issue generated controversy yesterday at a company’s annual shareholder meeting in Seattle. The company is Expeditors International, a Fortune 500 global logistics company based in Seattle. It trades in the NASDAQ 100 and generates $5 billion in annual revenue. A shareholder proposal requested adoption of a written policy banning sexual orientation… Read More
Age Discrimination Case: $560,000 in Attorneys’ Fees
How do you turn a run-of-the-mill termination for poor performance into an $800,000 liability? We find the answer in the Sears Roebuck catalog. Former Sears employee Gunnar Steward sued for age discrimination after his termination for performance reasons. The facts of the case are relatively unremarkable. In fact, the evidence supporting Steward’s discrimination claim was… Read More
Supreme Court Considers Age Discrimination Burdens of Proof
The Supreme Court was busy with two employment cases yesterday. We reported below on the employee benefits case. The Court also heard arguments in Meacham v. Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory, which addresses the burdens of proof to be applied in age discrimination cases. Here is a New York Times article about the case. Briefs and… Read More
Court Permits “Public Policy” Constructive Discharge Claim Based on Sexual Harassment
Candace Wahl worked for a few months as a dental assistant in a small dental clinic. A dentist who co-owned the clinic commented about her breasts and the bodies of other employees and female patients, made sexual explicit comments about his sex life, and at one point allegedly masturbated while the two of them were… Read More