Sabatini and Associates, LLC Attorneys at Law :: Newington :: Hartford :: Connecticut

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently obtained a court judgment of $1,073,261 against Whirlpool Corporation in a race and  sex discrimination lawsuit on behalf of Carlota Freeman, an African American  former employee at the company’s LeVergne, Tenn.-based facility.  According to the lawsuit, Whirlpool  failed to protect  Freeman from persistent harassment by a white male coworker, which ultimately  resulted in her being physically assaulted by him.   The Court agreed.

Following a bench trial, Tennessee District Court Judge  John T. Nixon  awarded Freeman $773,261 in back pay and front pay, and  $300,000 in compensatory damages for non-pecuniary injuries – the maximum  allowed under federal law. During the  four-day trial, the evidence showed that Freeman reported escalating offensive  verbal conduct and gestures by the male coworker over a period of two months  before he physically assaulted her; four levels of Whirlpool’s management were  aware of the escalating harassment; Whirlpool failed to take effective steps to  stop the harassment; and, Freeman suffered devastating permanent mental  injuries that will prevent her from working again as a result of the assault  and Whirlpool’s failure to protect her.

In its defense, Whirlpool claimed that it had posted its anti-discrimination and harassment policies in the workplace and thereby relived itself from liability.  However, the court correctly  pointed out that when those charged with enforcing a policy don’t take that  responsibility seriously, an employer has not met its duty under Title VII to  prevent and stop illegal harassment in its workplace.

Two new categories of FMLA leave were created by a 2008 amendment:

1. Injured Service Member Leave. Employees who are the spouse, parent, child or “next of kin” of a service member who suffers a serious injury or illness while on active duty may take up to 26 weeks of FMLA leave during the 12 month period immediately after the injury.
2. Leave for “Qualifying Exigency.” Employees with a spouse, parent or child who is on active duty or has been called to active duty may take up to 12 weeks of FMLA leave when a “qualifying exigency” is experienced. 

What is qualifying exigency?  It is a good question because Congress chose not to define it. The department of labor has indicated that “qualifying exigency” may include things such as making arrangements for childcare, making financial and legal arrangements, attending counseling relating to the active duty of the service member, or attending to farewell or arrival arrangements for the service member.

The US Supreme Court has ruled that the federal civil rights laws that protect employees from unlawful discrimination also protect co-workers who face retaliation for standing up for a co-worker who has been subjected to discrimination.  In the specific case, a Cracker Barrel manager claimed that he was fired in retaliation for complaining that a fellow employee was terminated because she was black.  The Court found that he had a viable legal claim under the federal anti-discrimination laws.  This is a significant decision for it provides legal protection for workers who see, report and complain of discrimination occuring to co-workers in the workplace.  If you have been subjected to illegal employment discriminatiion, retaliation or termination, please contact one of our employment lawyers.