Blog - Decatur Legal -

Electric Company Pays $1 million to Settle Charges of Racial Discrimination

Companies who have more than $10,000 in federal contracts must agree to institute Affirmative Action policies and are required to maintain equal employment practices. Also they must submit to periodic audits conducted by the Department of Labor.

Since 2005, Lincoln Electric has had more than $2 million in contracts with the federal government. Based on statistical analysis issued by the U.S. Department of Labor, from 2005 to 2007, the electric company discriminated against thousands of African American job applicants. According to the article, Lincoln Electric to Pay $1 million to Settle Federal Discrimination Claims, potential employees were asked questions that were intended to screen job applicants. Such included questions pertaining to previous experience involving physical labor and prior drug convictions, of which had little to do with the jobs in question.

As a result of such questions, Lincoln Electric did not hire 5,557 qualified individuals who were African American. The DOL finds validity in this type of questioning for particular jobs and at a later stage of the hiring process, but to ask such questions initially, the DOL perceives as questionable. The $1 million settlement will be dispersed among the rejected applicants, equaling approximately $180 per person. Lincoln Electric has agreed to cease its past practices and hire 48 people into positions as they become available.

If you or someone you know thinks they have experienced discrimination due to race, the team at Radford & Keebaugh can help. Contact us by phone at (678) 369-3609or use our contact form.

Laurus Technical Institute’s “No Gossip” Policy Found to be Unlawful

In a decision issued last week, the National Labor Relations Board found that a college’s “No Gossip” policy was too broad and in violation of labor law. For more information, and a copy of the NLRB decision, see here. In its employee handbook, Laures Technical Institute’s policy on gossip reads in part, “Gossip is not tolerated at Laurus Technical Institute. Employees that participate in or instigate gossip about the company, an employee, or customer will receive disciplinary action. Gossip is an activity that can drain, corrupt, distract and down-shift the company’s productivity, moral, and overall satisfaction.”

As a result of the decision, an employee of the college who was terminated for violating the school’s policy on gossip was awarded back pay with additional interest on the amount. In addition, the college has been ordered to cease from maintaining or enforcing its overly broad No Gossip policy and from disciplining employees in any way for violating such policy.

The judge found that, “A thorough reading of this vague, overly-broad policy reveals that it narrowly prohibits virtually all communications about anyone, including the company or it managers.” The judge further stated that overly broad policies such as this, “Inhibit employees from bringing work-related complaints to, and seeking redress from, entities other than the [employer] and restrains the employees’ Section 7 rights to engage in concerted activities for other mutual aid or protection.”

If you or someone you know thinks they have been wrongfully terminated, the team at Radford & Keebaugh can help. Contact us by phone at (678) 369-3609 or use our contact form.

Obama Drafting Executive Order on LGBT Job Discrimination

As detailed in this Huffington Post article, the Employment Nondiscrimination Act (ENDA), passed by Congress, but currently stalled in the house, would ban employers nationwide from firing or harassing employees based on their sexual orientation or gender identity. Due to the house’s indecision, it is expected that it will be another two years before the bill is passed.

According to a White House official, in an attempt to circumvent this unnecessary time frame, President Barack Obama has requested that an executive order be drafted that would protect lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) employees of federal contractors.

Currently there are no federal laws that adequately protect the LGBT community from workplace discrimination. In 32 states, it is still legal to terminate an individual’s employment simply because of their sexual orientation. The proposed order will “build upon existing protections, which generally prohibit federal contractors and subcontractors from discriminating in employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.” stated the White House official, further elaborating, “Today, millions of Americans in most states of the country go to work every day knowing they could lose their jobs simply because of who they are and who they love.”

What has been described as the new civil rights movement, LGBT rights are in the forefront of the nation’s issues. If you or someone you know thinks they have experienced employment discrimination, the team at Radford & Keebaugh can help. Contact us by phone at (678) 369-3609or use our contact form.

Alabama State University Professor Files Reverse Discrimination Suit

After he complained to school officials that be believed that applicants were denied employment opportunities with the school due to their race, an Alabama State University professor alleges he was met with retaliation. According to the article, White Professor Sues ASU for Reverse Discrimination, Dr. John Garland alleges that as a result of his speaking out, he was transferred to a job that had a lower salary, his profile was removed from the university website, and he was moved to an office that did not have such things as a working computer, phone extensions, or mail service, all of which contributed to a sense of isolation.

In a suit filed against the university, Dr. Garland claims to have witnessed an ASU diversity officer complain at a campus forum that there were too many whites on the school’s faculty. He alleges that he witnessed a faculty member say that only the African American applicants were suited to teach African American students, and that members of a search committee stated that their primary goal should be to hire someone who was female and black. The suit also alleges that after Garland’s partner was appointed Dean of the College of Health Sciences, some of the faculty members expressed concern that the department was becoming too white and began to call it the “White House.”

Counsel for Dr. Garland stated, “There is a powerful institution here attempting to crush employees because they have protested against illegalities and because of who they are.”

In 2013, an appellate court upheld a decision to award more than $1 million in damages to three women in a sexual and racial discrimination suit against ASU. The three judge panel stated it was, “unnerved by the apparent acquiescence to, if not outright condoning of, the abusive work environment created by (the university’s) high-level employees.”

If you or someone you know thinks they have experienced discrimination due to race, the team at Radford & Keebaugh can help. Contact us by phone at (678) 369-3609 or use our contact form.

Parody twitter account leads to police raid, with major implications for First and Fourth Amendment rights

A satiric photo of Mayor Ardis from the @NotPeoriaMayor twitter page

Using the name @peoriamayor, a Peoria, Illinois resident created a Twitter account made in the likeness of Mayor Jim Ardis. The account was intended to be a parody shared between Jon Daniel and his friends. As described in the article, Police Raid Over Tweets Leads to Lawsuit Against Peoria Mayor, the tweets, such as those in support of strippers, tequila and crack pipes, were intended to be funny and seen only by a small group of individuals. Despite this, the twitter account grew a rapid following. Once he realized the number of followers was growing, Daniel labeled it as a parody feed.

With grammatically incorrect tweets such as, “Im bout to climb the civic center and do some lines on the roof who’s in,’ Daniel’s rationalization was, who would possibly believe the mayor or anyone working for the mayor would have such difficulty with use of the English language?

At the request of the mayor and city manager, an investigation into where the tweets originated was initiated, ending in a police raid on Daniel’s home. Daniels has filed suit, claiming that city officials violated his First and Fourth Amendment rights.

Ardis explained to reporters, “There is no way for someone to know that what was being said under my name, picture and contact information was not coming from me. My identity as Mayor was stolen.”

Lead counsel for Daniels, Harvey Grossman stated, “Political parody is a great tradition in the United States – from Thomas Nast to Jon Stewart.”

If you or someone you know believe their constitutional rights have been violated, the team at Radford & Keebaugh can help. Contact us by phone at (678) 369-3609 or use our contact form.