Hostile Work Environment

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In Smith v. Town of Hempstead Dept. of Sanitation Sanitary District No. 2, decided November 16, 2013, the Eastern District of New York discussed the application of the Supreme Court’s recent Nassar decision in the context of a summary judgment motion.   Nassar modified the standard for proving retaliation under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of…

Read More Plaintiff Presented Sufficient Evidence of Retaliation to Survive Summary Judgment Under New “But For” Causation Standard
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Here is the complaint recently filed in New York state court by plaintiffs Jeanette Grullon, Jenny Mejia, and Sandra Pozo against Catholic Charities Neighborhood Services, Inc. Plaintiff allege that they were “sexually harassed by their African-American male supervisor at Catholic Charities, where they were employed. When they complained about the sexual harassment, they were intimidated and accused…

Read More Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Against Catholic Charities Neighborhood Services
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In Kennington v. 226 Realty LLC, the court denied defendant’s motion to dismiss plaintiffs’ complaint alleging sexual harassment and age discrimination. Although the court held only that the plaintiffs state a claim for relief (without determining the ultimate issue of liability), this case is instructive as to how to plead discrimination claims under the New…

Read More Plaintiffs Sufficiently Alleged Sexual Harassment and Age Discrimination Claims Under the New York City Human Rights Law
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Recently, in Cajamarca v. Regal Entertainment Group, the New York Supreme Court (NY County) dismissed plaintiff’s sexual harassment and related claims arising from the alleged conduct of her co-worker (Gadsden). In this “pure” hostile work environment case (i.e., one in which plaintiff did not suffer a “tangible employment action”), plaintiff alleged that shortly after Gadsden…

Read More Theater Not Strictly Liable for Sexual Harassment by Co-Worker; Masturbation in Plaintiff’s Presence Did Not Constitute Assault
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Below and here is the complaint recently filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York by sewer maintenance worker Lisa Sprada against her employer, the Town of Cheektowaga. (News coverage here and here.) The case is captioned Sprada v. Town of Cheektowaga, WDNY 13-00985. Plaintiff alleges that upon transferring into her…

Read More Female Sewer Maintenance Worker’s Sexual Harassment Lawsuit
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A recent Second Circuit decision, Albert-Roberts v. GGG Construction (Summary Order), illustrates that the workplace utterance of even the most arguably vile racial slur (“nigger”) is not necessarily sufficient to support a hostile work environment claim. Plaintiff, who was employed by GGG as a part-time, nighttime office cleaner, alleged that she was subjected to a hostile…

Read More Co-Worker’s Use of Racial Slur Did Not Support Hostile Work Environment Claim; Timing of Outsourcing Decision Resulted in Dismissal of Retaliation Claim
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On Friday, the Second Circuit held in Colquitt v. Xerox Corp. (Summary Order) that plaintiff’s employment discrimination claims that were not raised – or “administratively exhausted” – in the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) were properly dismissed from plaintiff’s lawsuit. In Colquitt, plaintiff alleged that she was subjected to (1) a race-based denial of phone privileges and…

Read More Second Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Employment Discrimination Claims Not Raised in the EEOC
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On October 28, 2013, the Southern District of New York issued its opinion in Guzman v. NY Post, holding that plaintiff Sandra Guzman presented sufficient evidence to proceed on her hostile work environment, discriminatory termination, and retaliation claims. The decision was (I am sure happily) covered by the Daily News here. Plaintiff is a black, Hispanic, Puerto Rican…

Read More Hostile Work Environment, Sexual Harassment, and Race/National Origin Claims Continue Against New York Post and Col Allan
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In Colon v. Fashion Institute of Technology, the Southern District of New York ruled on employment discrimination and retaliation claims brought by two plaintiffs, both Hispanic women, against FIT.  It considered claims brought by Genette Colon, a student aide, and Elvimar Rivas, a secretary, under various laws, including the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA),…

Read More Court Rules on Discrimination and Retaliation Claims Against Fashion Institute of Technology
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Below and here is the sexual harassment lawsuit filed by Sherina Thomas against EONY and EONY’s owner David Shavolian in the Supreme Court of New York (Index No. 158961/2013). Plaintiff alleges, among other things, that defendant Shavolian forced plaintiff to show him her breasts and proceeded to “fondl[e]” and “jiggl[e]” them; asked her whether she “shave[s]…

Read More Sexual Harassment Complaint Alleges Supervisor Made Sexually Explicit Remarks and Forced Plaintiff to Watch Him Urinate
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