National Origin Discrimination

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In Altman v. New Rochelle Pub. Sch. Dist., No. 13-CV-3253 (NSR), 2016 WL 3181153 (S.D.N.Y. June 2, 2016), the court denied defendant’s motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s national origin discrimination claim. “In order to establish a prima facie case of discriminatory termination of employment [under Title VII], the plaintiff must show that she belongs to…

Read More Title VII Plaintiff Survives Summary Judgment on National Origin Discrimination Claim
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In Kasiotakis v. Macy’s Retail Holdings, Inc., No. 14 CIV. 462 CM, 2015 WL 6125356 (S.D.N.Y. Oct. 16, 2015), the court granted defendant Macy’s motion for summary judgment as to plaintiff’s national origin discrimination complaint. The court explained that plaintiff failed to prove “pretext” as part of the burden-shifting analysis as provided for by  McDonnell…

Read More Greek Ancestry Not Connected to Termination; Discrimination Case Dismissed
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The Southern District of New York’s recent decision in Hiralall v. Sentosacare, LLC, No. 13 CIV. 4437 (GBD), 2016 WL 1126530 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 18, 2016) demonstrates that nepotism – defined here as “favouritism shown to relatives or close friends by those with power or influence” – does not, at least in this case, rise to the…

Read More Nepotism Insufficient to Establish Race/National Origin Discrimination
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In Lopez v. Advantage Plumbing & Mech. Corp., No. 15-CV-4507 (AJN), 2016 WL 1268274 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 31, 2016), the court held, among other things, that plaintiffs could amend their complaint to add a national origin discrimination (hostile work environment) claim under the NYC Human Rights Law (but not federal or state law) based on defendants’ “English-only”…

Read More “English Only” National Origin Discrimination Hostile Work Environment Claim Plausibly Alleged Under NYC Human Rights Law
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In a lawsuit captioned Tomahawk v. 207-215 W 98th St. Condominium et al (NY Sup. Ct. NY Cty. 152509/2016, filed March 23, 2016), the plaintiff – a disabled Native American and Hispanic porter at a Manhattan building – alleges that he was subjected to discrimination based on his disability and Native American heritage. From the…

Read More Disparaging Remarks About Native Americans Alleged in Manhattan Employment Discrimination Lawsuit
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A plaintiff asserting discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 must establish, among other things, that they suffered an “adverse employment action.” That term, like many in the law, has a specialized meaning. In Boza-Meade v. Rochester Hous. Auth., No. 6:14-CV-6356 EAW, 2016 WL 1157643 (W.D.N.Y. Mar. 21, 2016), the court…

Read More Criticism of Work Etc. Was Not “Adverse Employment Action”; Race and National Origin Discrimination Case Dismissed
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Singh v. Covenant Aviation Sec., LLC, 131 A.D.3d 1158, 1159-60, 16 N.Y.S.3d 611 (N.Y. App. Div. 2d Dept. 2015) illustrates the difference between the New York State Human Rights Law, on the one hand, and the broader New York City Human Rights Law, on the other. Plaintiff, who identifies as Indian, worked for defendant as…

Read More Plaintiff Fired for Sleeping on the Job Survives Summary Judgment on NYC Human Rights Law (But Not NYS Human Rights Law) Claim
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In Febrianti v. Worldwide, No. 15-CV-0635 (JMF), 2016 WL 50202 (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 8, 2016), the court dismissed plaintiff’s retaliation, hostile work environment, and constructive discharge claims. Here, plaintiff, who identifies as a Southeast Asian non-Chinese speaker, worked for defendant as a cleaner in the Union Square W Hotel. She alleged, among other things, that she…

Read More Hotel Cleaner’s Retaliation, Hostile Work Environment, Constructive Discharge Claims Insufficiently Alleged
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In Santiago-Mendez v. City of New York, 2016 WL 416877 (N.Y. App. Div. 1st Dept. Feb. 4, 2016), the court held that plaintiff’s non-time-barred claims for race, national origin, and gender discrimination as against the City of New York and two individual defendants should not have been dismissed. Here is the Order appealed from; here is plaintiff’s complaint. From the…

Read More Decision: NYPD Detective’s Race, National Origin, and Gender Discrimination Claims Proceed
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In a lawsuit filed on December 30, 2015 in New York Supreme Court (Figueroa v. Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Sweden et al., Index # 163141/2015), plaintiff Carlos Figueroa, a chauffeur and office clerk employed by the Sweden’s New York Mission to the United Nations, asserts various claims, including for personal injuries (sustained while assembling…

Read More Personal Injury and Discrimination Lawsuit Against Sweden’s New York Mission to the United Nations
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