Justia Labor & Employment Law Opinion Summaries

A physician assistant worked for a medical practice in New Hampshire for over a decade. During her employment, she had a series of contentious interactions with one of the practice’s orthopedic surgeons, who was also a partner and vice-president of the organization. The surgeon accused her of being disrespectful and ultimately insisted that he could not remain at the practice if she continued to work there. This ultimatum led the practice’s partners to vote unanimously to terminate her employment. However, the practice allowed her to continue working during a transition period while the parties negotiated a severance agreement and a possible independent contractor arrangement.After the employee raised concerns that her termination was driven by sex discrimination, the practice ended negotiations and immediately terminated her employment. She subsequently filed suit in the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire against both the medical practice and the surgeon, alleging sex discrimination and retaliation under federal and state law. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of both defendants, concluding that there was insufficient evidence to support her claims.On appeal, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit affirmed the district court’s grant of summary judgment on the sex discrimination claim, finding there was no genuine issue of material fact that her termination was motivated by gender bias rather than personal conflict. However, the court reversed summary judgment on the retaliation claim against the practice. The court held there was sufficient evidence for a reasonable jury to find that the practice accelerated her termination and withdrew an independent contractor opportunity in retaliation for her complaint of sex discrimination. The case was remanded for further proceedings on the retaliation claim. View "Russo v. New Hampshire Neurospine Institute, P.A." on Justia Law

After his termination from the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, Jeremy Ellis, who had worked there since 2007 and as a detention deputy since 2010, filed suit against the Sheriff in his official capacity. Ellis claimed he was fired in retaliation for filing charges of discrimination with both the EEOC and the Florida Commission on Human Relations, which alleged disability and religious discrimination. The Sheriff's Office conducted an internal investigation after Ellis's EEOC filing, focusing on alleged falsehoods and disparagement found in his charge, and asserted his termination was based on these false statements, along with a procedural infraction regarding address notification. Evidence at trial showed that Ellis’s drinking and his statements during the investigation were also considered, but the termination notice expressly cited the EEOC charge as the basis for dismissal.The United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida heard the case. At trial, both sides presented evidence regarding the motivations for Ellis's termination. The jury found in Ellis’s favor on both his retaliation claims under Title VII and Florida law, awarding him significant damages. After the verdict, the Sheriff moved for judgment as a matter of law, arguing insufficient evidence of causation, and separately for a new trial, contending the jury was improperly instructed that an employer cannot fire an employee for statements in an EEOC charge, even if false. The district court denied both motions.On appeal, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit reviewed the district court’s jury instruction and its denial of judgment as a matter of law. The appellate court held that, under binding precedent, an employer may not terminate an employee for statements made in an EEOC charge, even if believed false, and found sufficient evidence supported the jury’s finding of retaliatory motive. Accordingly, the Eleventh Circuit affirmed the district court’s rulings. View "Ellis v. Sheriff, Hillsborough County Florida" on Justia Law

Richard Highbaugh, a Black man aged 60, worked for Exelead, Inc., a pharmaceutical manufacturer, for nearly three decades in various warehouse roles. In 2022, after a vacancy arose for a Materials Manager position, Highbaugh, who had experience as a supervisor and as a Sampling Specialist, expressed interest in the promotion. However, he did not apply during the internal posting period, instead submitting his materials to his supervisor, Aaron Mendez, about two months after the internal posting closed. Mendez ultimately hired an external candidate, a white man in his thirties, citing the external candidate’s experience with larger scale management and skills relevant to the position. Highbaugh believed he was passed over due to his race and age and filed charges with the EEOC before bringing suit.The United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana granted summary judgment to Exelead. The district court concluded that Highbaugh failed to raise a genuine issue of material fact that Exelead’s stated reason for not promoting him—concerns about his qualifications and suitability for the manager role—was a pretext for discrimination.On appeal, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit reviewed the grant of summary judgment de novo and affirmed the lower court’s decision. The Seventh Circuit held that, even assuming Highbaugh established a prima facie case of discrimination under Title VII, § 1981, and the ADEA, Exelead provided a legitimate, non-discriminatory reason for its decision, and Highbaugh did not produce evidence sufficient for a reasonable jury to find this reason was pretextual. The court found no evidence of shifting or inconsistent explanations, nor that Highbaugh was so much better qualified that discrimination could be inferred. Accordingly, the judgment for Exelead was affirmed. View "Highbaugh v Exelead, Inc." on Justia Law

A senior employee at a major financial institution managed a significant medical disability for nearly thirty years. Initially, he did so without formal accommodations and excelled, rising to a top leadership position. After a serious health setback in 2017 required him to adopt a new medical protocol, his need for flexibility at work increased, particularly in terms of immediate and unpredictable bathroom access. During the COVID-19 pandemic, remote work made this manageable. He moved back to the company’s headquarters in 2020, relying on assurances from his then-manager that he could work from home when needed. In 2021, with management changes and a planned return to office, he formally requested a permanent remote-work accommodation. Senior management, who were aware of his disability, reacted with skepticism and ultimately included him in a reduction in force, terminating his employment before the office fully reopened.The United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina heard his claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) for failure to accommodate, discriminatory discharge, and retaliation, as well as a claim for wrongful discharge under North Carolina law. A jury found for the plaintiff on all claims, awarding substantial damages, including back pay, front pay, emotional distress, and punitive damages. The district court denied the employer’s motions for judgment as a matter of law or a new trial and entered judgment on the verdict, later remitting punitive damages under the ADA to comply with statutory caps and awarding prejudgment interest under state law.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit reviewed the case and affirmed the verdict only as to the ADA retaliation claim, holding that substantial evidence supported a finding that the employee’s request for accommodation was a but-for cause of his discharge. However, the court reversed the verdicts on the failure-to-accommodate and disability-discrimination claims, finding insufficient evidence that any reasonable accommodation was denied or that the discharge was because of the disability itself. The court remanded for entry of judgment as a matter of law on those claims, vacated certain damages, and ordered adjustment of the back-pay award unless the plaintiff accepted a remittitur. The matter was remanded for further proceedings consistent with these rulings. View "Billesdon v. Wells Fargo Securities, LLC" on Justia Law

A group of janitorial employees working for a cleaning company and its subcontractor in San Francisco protested their working conditions, with support from a local union. The protests included picketing outside buildings serviced by the companies, distributing flyers, and carrying signs. The picketing identified the cleaning company as the subject of the labor dispute and included statements clarifying that the protest was not a strike or a call to boycott the buildings. Following these actions, several employees who participated in the protests were fired or had their work assignments reduced. The union filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board, alleging retaliatory discharges and other unfair labor practices.An administrative law judge found that the companies had violated the National Labor Relations Act by retaliating against the workers for protected activity, rejecting the employers’ defenses that the picketing was unlawful secondary or recognitional picketing. The National Labor Relations Board reversed, holding the picketing had an impermissible secondary object and was thus unprotected. On review, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit found the Board lacked substantial evidence for this conclusion and remanded the case.On remand, the Board, after considering additional evidence proffered by the employer, reaffirmed the original finding that the picketing did not have a prohibited secondary or recognitional object and that the companies had violated the Act. The Board ordered remedies including reinstatement and compensation for the discharged employees.The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, reviewing the case, denied the company’s petition for review and granted the Board’s cross-petition for enforcement. The court held that the Board properly considered and rejected the employer’s defenses, found substantial evidence supporting the Board’s determination that the picketing did not have an illegal objective, and concluded that the company’s challenge to the Board’s remedial order was not properly preserved for appeal. View "Preferred Building Services, Inc. v. NLRB" on Justia Law

Five employees of the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife sought and received religious exemptions from a statewide COVID-19 vaccine mandate issued in August 2021. However, the Department informed these employees that it could not accommodate them in their current positions due to job requirements involving in-person work. Instead, it offered them the opportunity to pursue possible reassignment through a process that historically resulted in successful placements only 14 percent of the time, with no assurances that new positions would preserve pay or resolve the religious conflict. The employees did not complete this process, doubting its efficacy, and were subsequently terminated.In the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, the employees brought claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the Washington Law Against Discrimination (WLAD), and both federal and state constitutions. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the Department on all claims, finding that the Department’s offer of the reassignment process satisfied its duty to provide a reasonable accommodation under Title VII and WLAD. The court also dismissed certain federal claims on procedural grounds and excluded three expert witnesses, while issuing a protective order limiting discovery.The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reviewed the case. It held that, as a matter of law, merely offering a limited reassignment process with uncertain prospects does not fulfill an employer’s obligation under Title VII to propose a reasonable accommodation that eliminates the conflict between religious beliefs and job duties. The Ninth Circuit reversed the district court’s grant of summary judgment on most of the Title VII claims and all WLAD claims (except for two employees who failed to meet procedural requirements), but affirmed the dismissal of federal and state constitutional claims, the exclusion of expert testimony, and the issuance of the protective order. The case was remanded for further proceedings. View "CHERRY V. WASHINGTON DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE" on Justia Law

An employee of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms suffered from depression and cardiac arrhythmia. After being promoted to a more demanding position, she reported that the increased stress from her job was worsening her health conditions. She requested several accommodations, including unpaid leave, a lateral transfer to a comparable position, or other unspecified assistance. Her supervisors denied unpaid leave, offering instead flexible use of her accrued paid leave and eventually a demotion to a less stressful position. After ongoing health issues and no suitable positions becoming available, the employee accepted the demotion, which subsequently improved her symptoms.The employee filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity office, alleging that her demotion constituted disability discrimination and that her supervisors failed to provide reasonable accommodation. An initial administrative judge found the agency had failed to accommodate her, but this was reversed by the Office of Federal Operations upon appeal. She then brought suit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia. The district court granted summary judgment for the government, holding that the employee had not been coerced into her demotion and that her accommodation requests, except for the demotion, were either not reasonable or would have required the creation of a new position.On appeal, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit reviewed the district court’s grant of summary judgment de novo. The court held that the government did not have a duty to provide the other requested accommodations because they were either not specific or not reasonable. The court further held that no reasonable jury could find that the employee was coerced into accepting the demotion, and thus, her demotion did not constitute disability discrimination. The judgment of the district court was affirmed. View "Kingsolver v. U.S. Attorney General" on Justia Law

Four former employees brought claims against their previous employer, a lithium extraction technology company, and several of its managers, alleging wrongful termination, discrimination, exposure to harmful chemicals, and sexual harassment. Each employee had signed an agreement to arbitrate disputes arising out of employment. Despite this, after the lawsuit was filed, the defendants engaged in extensive litigation activity: they filed answers and cross-complaints asserting arbitration rights, initiated and responded to significant discovery, and made multiple procedural motions. Notably, they did not immediately move to compel arbitration, instead doing so only after the plaintiffs filed an anti-SLAPP motion.The Superior Court of California, County of Alameda, denied the defendants’ motion to compel arbitration, finding that the defendants had waived their right to arbitrate by substantially invoking the litigation process and taking steps inconsistent with an intent to arbitrate. The court relied on factors from prior California appellate decisions, focusing on the defendants’ conduct in court and their use of discovery tools not typically available in arbitration. The court did not find it necessary to decide whether the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act (EFAA) applied, as its waiver finding was dispositive.On appeal, the Court of Appeal of the State of California, First Appellate District, Division Four, affirmed the trial court’s order. The appellate court held that the trial court’s waiver analysis was consistent with the California Supreme Court’s decision in Quach v. California Commerce Club, Inc., which clarified that waiver of the right to arbitrate focuses solely on the party’s conduct and intent, not on prejudice to the opposing party. The appellate court found substantial evidence that the defendants intentionally relinquished their arbitration rights by actively litigating in court prior to seeking arbitration, and thus affirmed the denial of the motion to compel arbitration. View "Mitchell v. Lilac Solutions, Inc." on Justia Law

An employee working as a manager at a restaurant in Utah slipped on spilled ice in the kitchen and sustained injuries to his shoulder and neck. He had a pre-existing shoulder injury from previous employment but reported new pain and received medical treatment, including surgery. The employee did not notify his employer of the Utah injury within the 180-day deadline specified by state law. He later filed for workers’ compensation benefits, claiming both shoulder and neck injuries resulted from the slip-and-fall.During the initial proceedings before the Utah Labor Commission’s administrative law judge (ALJ), the employer listed lack of timely notice as an affirmative defense but did not specifically seek dismissal on that ground. Instead, the employer argued the lack of a report showed the injury never happened. The ALJ, on her own initiative, dismissed both claims, finding the employee failed to prove timely notice. The Commission’s Commissioner affirmed the dismissal of the shoulder claim based on untimely notice but allowed the neck claim. After further proceedings, the Appeals Board affirmed the ALJ’s decision. Both parties appealed to the Utah Court of Appeals. The court of appeals decided the case entirely on the time-bar issue, finding both claims untimely, and declined to address other challenges.The Supreme Court of the State of Utah reversed, holding that the employer waived the limitations defense by not seeking relief on that ground before the ALJ. The court concluded that the ALJ’s sua sponte ruling on the notice issue did not preserve it for appeal, as it did not satisfy the fairness component of the preservation doctrine. The Supreme Court vacated the court of appeals’ decision and remanded for further proceedings on the remaining merits issues. The court further directed that the shoulder injury claim be remanded to the Labor Commission for consideration of the merits. View "Darden Restaurant v. Labor Commission" on Justia Law

Two labor unions, each with a collective bargaining agreement covering the same maintenance and repair work at a Seattle shipping terminal, both claimed the right to this work when the terminal was modernized and reopened. The employer, SSA Terminals, was contractually obligated to both the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) to assign the work to their members. When the work was assigned to ILWU, IAM threatened to strike. To resolve the conflict, SSA Terminals invoked the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) provision allowing the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to determine which union should be awarded the work in such jurisdictional disputes.The NLRB conducted a hearing under Section 10(k) of the NLRA and awarded the disputed work to IAM, finding that employer preference, skills, efficiency, and past practice favored IAM. After the decision, ILWU filed a grievance and won an arbitration award against SSA Terminals, arguing that the employer had not adequately defended ILWU’s contractual rights. In response, IAM and SSA Terminals filed an unfair labor practice charge, alleging that ILWU’s actions were intended to coerce the employer to reassign the work, violating Section 8(b)(4)(D) of the NLRA. The NLRB’s administrative law judge and the Board found that ILWU had violated the Act and rejected ILWU’s defense that its actions were permissible work-preservation activity.The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, sitting en banc, held that the “work-preservation” defense recognized in National Labor Relations Board v. International Longshoremen’s Association does not apply to unfair labor practice charges under Section 8(b)(4)(D) for failing to respect the Board’s resolution of a jurisdictional dispute. The court overruled its prior contrary precedent and enforced the NLRB’s order. View "NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD V. INTERNATIONAL LONGSHORE AND WAREHOUSE UNION" on Justia Law