Employment Law Case Summaries

A transgender woman in Georgia sought to have her employer-provided health care plan cover gender-affirming treatment, including surgery. It denied her request, citing an exclusion in the plan of “[d]rugs for sex change surgery” and “[s]ervices and supplies for a…

The Ninth Circuit revived a class-action lawsuit filed by Nevada employees who alleged they were not paid for time spent booting up and shutting down computers in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The employees said the unpaid…

A town attorney with anxiety, depression and high blood pressure alleged that political infighting produced a “caustic work environment.” The mayor harassed his staff, he said, and a former mayor threatened to let him go if he did not align…

A white employee in Colorado opposed his employer’s mandatory DEI training program. He insisted that it pushed a “woke” agenda and resulted in him being subjected to race-based harassment and discrimination. He said he filed a complaint, but because his…

An employee suffered a work-related back injury and was awarded total temporary disability (TTD) benefits. A physician later conducted an independent medical examination and determined that the employee had reached maximum medical improvement. Sometime after that examination, a hearing officer…

A research strategist at a securities firm sued to allege that the firm violated the federal Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 by terminating his employment because he reported suspected fraud on shareholders. A federal appeals court vacated a jury verdict for…

A job applicant was subjected to a video interview that was then analyzed to evaluate his truthfulness during the interview. He was not informed that the analysis would occur, and he sued to allege violations of a state law that…

An emergency medical technician filed a claim for workers’ compensation benefits. He said he sustained hearing loss as a result of repeated exposure to loud radio and siren noise while on the job. He did not say how often he…

A white employee uttered a racial slur during a Zoom meeting. Several co-workers heard him. He texted an apology to his manager, explaining that he had been singing along to a rap song and thought he was on mute. The…

A Home Depot was injured while using a ladder to retrieve a bag of firewood. She sued for negligence, and Home Depot filed a motion for summary judgment. The court ruled that Home Depot did not owe Mejia a duty…

An employee injured his shoulder at work. A physician performed surgery and found that the employee reached maximum medical improvement. The employee and employer entered into a settlement agreement that resolved his claim for workers’ compensation benefits. Pursuant to the…

A female applied for a job as a firefighter. The employer eliminated the applicant from her recruiting class because she did not achieve a passing score on the department’s physical abilities test. A total of 499 applicants in the class,…

A woman was hired for an IT position in 2013 at an annual salary of $70,000. By 2019 her salary had reached $82,292. She learned that a male employee who held the same position and was hired in 1998 was…

A counselor with bipolar disorder alleged that her employer violated the ADA by declining to excuse her from working the third shift. The court rejected her claim because the ability to stay for another shift if her replacement did not…

An employee who had cancer took a legal product called “Free Hemp” to manage his nausea symptoms. His employer had no policy against using the product. He was selected for a random drug test, and the contractor that conducted the…

A Black applicant who suffered from anxiety and depression was over the age of 40 when he applied for more than 100 jobs at various companies using Workday. He was not hired. He sued Workday, alleging it provided algorithm-based applicant…

In Mississippi, a 54-year-old Black woman with 20 years of experience at a retail company applied for a manager training program but was not selected. Alleging discrimination, she filed a complaint with the EEOC. Approximately two months later, her employment…

A Connecticut appeals court upheld a ruling that OK’d a preschool teacher’s termination. During the onboarding process, the preschool teacher signed her acknowledgment of the employer’s drug-free work policy, which strictly prohibited impairment at work. At that time, however, she…

A Pennsylvania tree care company alleged that the FTC lacked the authority to set a rule banning most non-compete agreements. It alleged that the agency does not have the authority to make substantive rules to prevent unfair methods of competition;…

A clinical manager with chronic arthritis in her knees asked to be excused from making field visits to provide patient care in patients’ homes. The employee’s job description said field visits “as needed” were part of the job, and it…