By Mitchel Wilson
In Singer v. Ferro, 35 IER Cases 614 (2013), the court affirmed summary judgment for the defendants and dismissed Singer’s first amendment retaliation claim. Singer had alleged retaliation in the form of baseless disciplinary actions and wrongful termination.
By Jim Cline
We are following other Labor and Employment Law Blogs on the Web and will bring to your attention some other articles worth reading. Here are some other articles we think are worth a look: [Read more…]
By Kate Acheson and Jim Cline
In Cain v. Montgomery County, the Federal Court in Tennessee dismissed the discrimination and retaliation claims of a lieutenant Emergency Medical Technician (“EMT”) who was demoted for passing gas loudly. A Montgomery County Emergency Medical Services employee, Rita Cain, was hired on as an EMT in 1992 and was later promoted her to the supervisory position of lieutenant EMT in 1996. On March 29, 2010, Cain was present during an EMT’s call to dispatch about a patient’s transport. During that incident, Cain was upset that dispatch had not notified EMS of the transport and stated: “You all don’t tell me shit.” Then, Cain passed gas loudly enough for the dispatcher to hear over the telephone. When the dispatcher complained, Cain dismissed her flatulence as a joke.
By Jim Cline and Mitchel Riese
A recent news story that garnered national attention concerned the discipline of a Social Security employee by the Social Security Administration, who reprimanded the employee for excessive workplace flatulence. The reprimand was delivered to the employee in a five-page letter that included a log of representative dates and times when the employee was recorded, “releasing the awful and unpleasant odor” in his Baltimore office. After the employee filed a grievance over the reprimand, the Social Security Administration withdrew it.
By Mitchel Wilson
The Federal 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals, in Desarduoin v. City of Rochester, 117 FEP Cases 778 (2d Cir. 2013) reestablished a fired female police security officer’s sexual harassment/discrimination claim against the City of Rochester, New York under Title VII, while affirming the dismissal of her retaliation and state law claims. The court concluded the lower court erred in granting summary judgment on the employee’s gender discrimination claim when she alleged her supervisor made unsolicited sexual advances from May to July of 2007, but correctly dismissed her retaliation and state law claims. The employer was able to defeat her retaliation claim when it showed that it acted for a legitimate, non-discriminatory reason, when it fired her for secretly recording fellow officers, a felony and violation of department policy.
By David E. Worley
In Keseker v. Marin Community College District (27 AD Cases 421 (N.D. Cal. 2012)), the California Federal District Court refused to dismiss a lawsuit brought by a former police officer who claimed he was unfairly forced to retire because of an anxiety disorder that made him not fit for duty. He claimed the employer violated the ADA in failing to provide him with reasonable accommodations, failing to engage in the interactive process, wrongful termination, and discriminating against him based on his disability. [Read more…]
By Jim Cline
We are following other Labor and Employment Law Blogs on the Web and will bring to your attention some articles worth reading. Here are some other articles we think are worth a look:
By David E. Worley
In Phillips v. Marion County Sheriff’s Office (194 LRRM 2389 (9th Cir. 2012)), the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a Corrections Officer has a constitutionally protected property interest in their employment once a final and binding reinstatement order has been issued. The Ninth Circuit stated that the property interest extends beyond the employment itself to the reinstatement of employment as well. The Marion County Sheriff’s Association (in Salem, Oregon), was successful in having a discharged deputy ordered reinstated in a “final and binding” arbitration decision. The County refused to abide by the arbitration decision, making the argument that public policy did not approve of the mistreatment of inmates, the misconduct the plaintiff was accused of. [Read more…]
By David E. Worley
In Wardia v. Justice & Pub. Safety Cabinet Dep’t of Juvenile Justice, (27 AD Case 385 (6th Cir. 2013), the Sixth Circuit Federal Court of Appeals granted summary judgment on a failure to accommodate claim of a former juvenile detention worker who was physically unable to perform a restraint on an inmate. Because the ability to physically restrain, while rarely used, is an essential function of the job, the plaintiff’s request to have other more physically capable employees perform restrains, the court ruled, was unreasonable. Further, the plaintiff’s request to be put on a light duty monitoring position, the court concluded, was unreasonable, as that position is rotating and temporary, and the ADA does not require converting a temporary position to a permanent one for the sake of accommodating a disability.
By David E. Worley
In Hall v. Village of Flossmoor Police Department (116 FEP Cases 1209), an Illinois Federal Court threw out the lawsuit of a School Liaison officer who was fired after an admitted sexual relationship with an 18 year-old, recently graduated student. The officer ultimately admitted that it occurred and had included sex in the Department vehicle. The court determined his claim that his race played a role in the termination could not survive summary judgment when the evidence of misconduct was so apparent. [Read more…]
