Race / Color Discrimination

In Chinnery v. NYS Office of Children and Family Svcs, decided April 25, 2014, Southern District of New York Magistrate Judge Maas recommended that defendant OCFS be granted summary judgment on plaintiff’s disparate treatment, retaliation, and hostile work environment claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. While the court’s discussion of…

Read More Court Reiterates That “Mere Workplace Bullying” Unrelated to the Plaintiff’s Membership in a Protected Class Does Not Constitute a Hostile Work Environment
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In Brown v. Daikin America, the Second Circuit (in an opinion dated June 27, 2014) held that plaintiff sufficiently alleged that his direct employer and its Japanese parent engaged in national origin and race discrimination under Title VII and NYS Human Rights Law claims. While this decision arises in the context of defendants’ motion to…

Read More White American Plaintiff Successfully Pleads Race and National Origin Discrimination Claims Against His U.S. Employer and its Japanese Parent
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Below is the employment discrimination complaint, recently filed by security guard Tiffany Bryan against her employer AEG Management Brooklyn, alleging race discrimination. She seeks recovery under 42 U.S.C. section 1981 and the New York City Human Rights Law. It alleges that plaintiff, a black woman, “was ridiculed, discriminated against, and effectively terminated for the way she wears…

Read More Lawsuit Alleges Discriminatory Treatment For Failure to Tame Afro
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On May 28, 2014, an Eastern District federal jury awarded $1.35 million to white Freeport police lieutenant Christopher Barella. Here is the Judgment, memorializing the following awards: $150,000 for loss of back pay, $1,000,000 for loss of front pay, $200,000 for punitive damages. In his Amended Complaint, plaintiff asserted that the Village of Freeport and…

Read More White Police Lieutenant Wins $1.35 Million Award in “Reverse” Discrimination Suit
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In Godbolt v Verizon N.Y. Inc., the Appellate Division, First Department affirmed the dismissal of plaintiff’s claims that he was terminated from his employment on the basis of his race and past criminal convictions in violation of the New York State and City Human Rights Laws. “Defendant explained that it terminated plaintiff because he failed to…

Read More Court Holds That “Stray Remarks” Doctrine May Apply to Claims Brought Under the New York City Human Rights Law
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In Kemp v. CSX Transp., Inc., the Northern District of New York recently denied defendant’s motion for summary judgment on plaintiffs’ racially hostile work environment and disparate treatment claims. As to plaintiffs’ hostile work environment claims, the court held: Plaintiffs allege that they were subjected to vulgar racial language throughout their employment and often viewed…

Read More Citing “Vulgar Racial Language” and More Lenient Treatment of White Employees, Court Denies Summary Judgment on Plaintiff’s Race Discrimination and Hostile Work Environment Claims
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In Saliba v Five Towns College, the Eastern District of New York held that plaintiff, an assistant professor, failed to state a claim for retaliation under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Plaintiff alleged that she was terminated solely because she had voiced her concerns regarding rampant corruption in the administration of…

Read More Court Dismisses Professor’s Retaliation Claim Based on Complaints About Another Professor’s Sexual Harassment of Students
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In Pickering v. Uptown Communications & Elec., Inc., the New York Supreme Court (Queens County) denied defendants’ motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s “prior conviction” discrimination claim, but dismissed his race discrimination claim. Defendant Uptown, a contractor for Time Warner Cable of New York City, employed plaintiff as a cable technician. A criminal background check…

Read More Cable Technician’s Criminal Conviction Discrimination Claim Continues; Race Discrimination Claim Dismissed
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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 Knight v. State University of New York at Stony Brook, the Eastern District of New York recently dismissed plaintiff’s race discrimination and retaliation claims, on the ground that plaintiff did not sufficiently allege that he was employed by the defendant. Plaintiff alleged that he worked as an electrician at a construction project for defendant…

Read More Court Dismisses Race Discrimination Case Because Plaintiff Didn’t Sufficiently Allege That He Was Employed by Defendant
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