Sex / Gender Discrimination

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In EEOC v. Suffolk Laundry Services, 48 F.Supp.3d 497 (2014), the Eastern District of New York denied defendants’ motion for partial summary judgment on plaintiffs’ hostile work environment claims. (Here is the complaint and here is the EEOC press release about the lawsuit.) One point this decision makes is that “conduct directed at other employees is part of the…

Read More “Hostile Work Environment” Can Be Shown By Conduct Directed at Other Employees
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Santiago v. Dept. of Education illustrates that in an employment discrimination case, the plaintiff must plausibly allege an “adverse employment action.” The quintessential “adverse employment action” is, of course, termination. However, other actions short of termination may qualify. Plaintiff – an itinerant attendance teacher – alleged disparate treatment and a hostile work environment under the…

Read More Employment Discrimination Lawsuit Dismissed; No “Adverse Action”
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Cafe Lalo, the Upper West Side cafe featured in the Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan romantic comedy “You’ve Got Mail” has been sued for wage violations and sexual harassment. Here’s the complaint. The plaintiffs, several women, allege (among other things) that defendant Daniel Reyes, a “barista and defacto manager … treated the restaurant as his own personal dating…

Read More “You’ve Got Mail” Cafe Sued for Sexual Harassment and Wage Violations
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Here is the federal lawsuit recently filed by waitress Alexandra Mitropoulous against Avlee Greek Kitchen and its owner, Peter Rogakos. Plaintiff alleges, that she was constructively discharged after being subjected to sexual harassment and battery. For example, she alleges that Rogakos asked her what color underwear she was wearing, pulled her hair, and tried to kiss…

Read More Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Against Avlee Greek Kitchen and Peter Rogakos
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Here is the complaint recently filed by Mets executive Leigh Castergine against Sterling Mets Front Office LLC and Chief Operating Officer Jeffrey Wilpon. Plaintiff alleges that she was discriminated against by Wilpon because she had a child without being married (a practice Wilpon was “morally opposed to”), and then fired for complaining about discrimination.

Read More Mets Executive Alleges She Was Fired For Out-of-Wedlock Pregnancy
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In Valleriani v. Route 390 Nissan (filed Sept. 2, 2014), the Western District of New York denied defendant’s motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s gender-based hostile work environment claim: [T]o constitute gender discrimination in the form of a hostile work environment, the conduct directed at Plaintiff had to be based on her gender. Here, the incidents…

Read More Content, Rather Than Motivation, for Sexually Offensive Language is Relevant in Hostile Work Environment Case, According to Court
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According to a lawsuit filed earlier this year, the male executives at Archie Comics behaved more like Reggie Mantle than Archie Andrews. Plaintiffs – several female employees – allege that various male executives humiliated, harassed, bullied, and intimidated female employees because of their gender and their support of co-CEO Nancy Seiberkleit. They further allege that “Archie Comics is…

Read More Lawsuit Alleges Gender Discrimination, Hostile Work Environment, and Retaliation at Archie Comics
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One way to prove discrimination is by introducing evidence of negative comments pertaining to the plaintiff’s protected class or about others in the plaintiff’s protected class. But what if some, or all, of the derogatory comments are not directly perceived by the harassment victim? That is one of the issues addressed by the Southern District…

Read More Secondhand “Incendiary” Comments Regarding Sexual Orientation Sufficient to State Hostile Work Environment Claim
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In Semmler v. County of Monroe, decided August 6, 2014, the Western District of New York reiterated that not all complaints of perceived discrimination will constitute “protected activity” necessary to make out a claim of retaliation. Specifically: A plaintiff cannot establish a prima facie case of retaliation [under Title VII] unless she has engaged in protected activity.…

Read More Not Every Complaint of Discrimination is “Protected Activity” Sufficient to Give Rise to a Retaliation Claim
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In a July 28, 2014 lawsuit filed in the Southern District of New York – captioned Rodriguez v. Jacqueline Dauhajre MD P.C. et al., 14-cv-5756 (embedded below) – plaintiff Jeffrey Rodriguez asserts that he was terminated from and/or not hired by an all-woman uptown Manhattan medical office because of his gender. Plaintiff alleges, among other things, that after…

Read More Man Rejected By Company’s “Vaginas” Who Are “Scared of Dick”, Gender Discrimination Lawsuit Alleges
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