Boston Employment Lawyer Blog

Family rights discrimination (FRD) -- discrimination against an employee who serves as a caregiver to a family member -- continues to be a hot button issue in the workplace. According to the Center for WorkLife Law (CWL), there were a total of just 8 FRD cases filed in the 1970s. The number significantly increased over the next several years, with a total of 97 FRD cases filed from 1986 to 1995. Unfortunately, FRD has shown little sign of abatement. From 1986 to 2005, FRD filings totaled 481; an increase of approximately 400%.

While smaller businesses present the highest incidence of FRD, large companies -- even those recognized by Fortune as "Best Companies to Work For" -- have been sued for such discrimination. According to the CWL, the success rate of FRD cases is relatively high, coming in at greater than 50% versus 20% for other types of discrimination cases. Notably, the average award for FRD cases is slightly over $100,000 with a high of $25 million.

Not surprisingly, women are plaintiffs in the overwhelming majority of FRD cases. It is not uncommon for such cases to arise in the context of pregnancy. A recent article featured in Forbes entitled How To Balance Work and Pregnancy, highlights two scenarios of which employees should be mindful:

Be Conscientious
If you do all this and notice your boss is restricting the types of projects you work on or has taken you off the partnership track, address it with him. In the best scenario, the boss is trying to make things easy on you (albeit unfairly). Document all of these changes and then say something to him. In most cases, it's a misunderstanding that will be rectified by your bringing it to his attention.

Be Wary
If it's a more serious situation, such as the boss making offhand comments about your pregnancy affecting your work, continue to document those instances. Also keep note of the change in assignments you're getting. First, go to your boss and ask if there's a problem with the quality of your work. If it doesn't improve, bring all the examples to human resources. Discriminating against someone because they're pregnant is illegal, and most companies will handle the situation immediately.

When in doubt, consult with an attorney who concentrates in employment law. You owe it to yourself, your family, and your career.

The Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD) recently announced that the Massachusetts Maternity Leave Act (MMLA), M.G.L. c. 149, s. 105D, must be viewed as gender neutral. Originally, the MMLA provided female employees with eight weeks of leave relating to the birth or adoption of a child. Recognizing the disparate treatment that the MMLA created, the MCAD Guidelines warned that "an employer who provides leave to female employees only, and not to male employees, may violate the federal prohibitions against sex discrimination even though the employer has acted in compliance with the MMLA" (See Answer 11).

MCAD Commissioner, Martin Ebel, defended the change as not only necessary to ensure equal treatment between male and female employees, but also to guarantee equality between same-sex couples:

If two women are married and adopt a child, then they are both entitled to leave under the [MMLA], and yet if two men are married and adopt a child, they would be entitled to no leave under a strict reading of the statute. That result was troubling to us, and we didn’t think it was in keeping with our mandate by statute, which is to eliminate, eradicate and prevent discrimination in Massachusetts.

The MCAD's long-awaited stance on the MMLA is a welcome change. Restricting the MMLA to female employees reflects the archaic perception that a woman's career should take a backseat after giving birth. Granting equal maternity leave benefits to both men and women finally brings the statute into the 21st century.

For more information about the change to the Massachusetts Maternity Leave Act, please visit the Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly article entitled, Men now eligible for maternity benefits

One of Boston's largest defense law firms finds itself in the same position as its clients: defending a lawsuit. In December 2007, Kamee Verdrager filed a gender discrimination and retaliation Charge of Discrimination with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD) against Mintz Levin. Ironically, Ms. Verdrager is an associate in Mintz Levin's employment law department where she defends claims brought against employers.

In her Charge, Ms. Verdrager details the repeated instances of gender bias that she allegedly experienced since the start of her employment in 2004. The Charge names Mintz Levin as a firm and also the following partners on an individual basis: David Barmak, Robert Gault, and Donald Schroeder.

Massachusetts Lawyer's Weekly reported on this case in an article entitled, Mintz, Levin associate hits firm with MCAD bias complaint. According to the article, Mintz Levin is no stranger to gender discrimination allegations:

In 2005, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a jury had acted permissibly on the evidence in finding that Mintz, Levin's Reston, Va., office had retaliated against a female employee, attorney Dawn M. Gallina — by deferring a pay increase and ultimately terminating her — because of her continued complaints of gender discrimination.

Given the factual issues at stake and the need for extensive discovery, we expect this case to be pulled out of the MCAD and wind up in Superior Court. To learn more about the MCAD process, please visit our post entitled, Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD) Issues Probable Cause Finding in Handicap Discrimination Case.

Last week, I received a Probable Cause finding from the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD) in a case involving handicap discrimination.

The decision confirms that, where an employer requests medical documentation from an employee to verify a medical condition and make accommodations, the inquiry must be appropriately focused:

The MCAD Guidelines state than an employer may request medical documentation to determine the existence of a disability and identify effective accommodations. However, the guidelines also that the inquiry must be appropriately focused. In the instant case, the Respondent's inquiries were not appropriately focused. The Respondent allowed a line supervisor to determine that an accommodation was to be denied. The Respondent then engaged in a protracted and obtuse series of inquiries by various individuals who lacked the knowledge or authority to determine what if any accommodation was needed.

Click here for the full decision.

The MCAD Process has multiple stages. First, a Charge of Discrimination must be filed within 300 days from the date the discrimination occurred. In response to the charges, the employer submits its Position Statement. The complainant next submits his or her Rebuttal in the final stage of the pleadings. Once all pleadings are submitted, the MCAD conducts its investigation and determines whether Probable Cause for discrimination exists.

The Probable Cause finding means that the MCAD has found sufficient evidence to support a conclusion that unlawful discrimination may have occurred. The case then proceeds to a conciliation conference where efforts at resolution between the Complainant and the Respondent are attempted. If the parties are unable to resolve the dispute, the case goes to Public Hearing.

Massachusetts' Criminal Offender Record Information laws should expect an overhaul in 2008. Among Governor Deval Patrick's initiatives is a push to assist individuals with criminal records with finding jobs and preventing workplace discrimination. The Massachusetts Bar Association (MBA) has been particularly outspoken about the need for CORI reform. Current MBA President, David White, discussed the hidden job discrimination with which this group must contend in his President's Message entitled, Criminal reforms are long overdue.

Under Governor Deval Patrick's recent proposed Executive Order (below), the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination will be responsible for adopting regulations "that prohibit an employer from rejecting or discharging a qualified person with a criminal record because of the mere existence of the record."

Continue reading "Massachusetts CORI Reform to Broaden MCAD's Police Power " »