The New York State Human Rights Law (NYSHRL) and New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL) prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex or gender. Despite the “liberal construction” applied to the interpretation of sex discrimination under the NYSHRL and NYCHRL, a Manhattan Supreme Court held on May 11, 2016,…
Last month, Governor Cuomo signed five bills into law that strengthen New York law’s prohibitions against sexual discrimination. Each of these bills form a part of the Women’s Equality Act, and collectively address such areas as equal pay for equal work, sexual harassment, familial status discrimination, attorneys’ fees in sexual…
On June 29, 2015, Mayor Bill De Blasio signed into law the Fair Chance Act, which was passed earlier in the month by the New York City Council. The law amends the New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL) to prohibit New York City employers with four or more employees…
Today, the U.S. Supreme Court held in an 8-1 decision that to prevail in a disparate-treatment case under Title VII based upon religion, a job applicant is only required to prove that the need for a religious accommodation was a motivating factor in the employer’s decision not to hire him…
Last week, the New York City Council passed the Stop Credit Discrimination in Employment Act, which amends the New York City Human Rights Law to prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of an individual’s consumer credit history. The law defines “consumer credit history” as “any information bearing on an individual’s…
On March 25, 2015, the United States Supreme Court issued its awaited decision in Young_v._UPS_(12-1226), in which the Court set forth the standard to be used in analyzing sex discrimination cases involving an employer’s failure to provide pregnant employees with work accommodations. Although the Court did not rule that employers…
Last month, we wrote that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) had challenged an employer wellness program that was implemented by Orion Energy Systems. In that case, the EEOC alleged that the employer had violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by requiring employees to submit to medical examinations that…
In recent years, employers have implemented health and fitness measures intended to curb the effects of chronic disease on their employees. The implementation of these “wellness” programs generally results in lower health insurance premium costs, and a healthier workforce. Nevertheless, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has challenged one of these…
Governor Cuomo has signed legislation extending coverage of the New York State Human Rights Law (“NYSHRL”) to unpaid interns. In March 2014, we wrote about the New York City Council’s decision to amend the New York City Human Rights Law to extend its coverage to unpaid interns. Now, interns in…
Earlier this month, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued new Enforcement Guidance applicable to the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), concerning pregnancy-related conditions. Pregnancy discrimination implicates both the PDA and ADA as well as other federal and New York statutes. The PDA was enacted in…