Takeaway: This decision reminds employers that Title VII covers a wide range of employment decisions beyond the most salient moments in a person's work life. The decision also highlights the uncertainty caused by courts' varying interpretations of Title VII's statutory text. Employers should stay tuned for the Supreme Court's decision in Muldrow v. City of St. Louis, interpreting what level of workplace harm Title VII makes actionable. The forthcoming ruling is expected to have a seismic impact on workplace decisions for years to come.
The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled that actionable claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 extend beyond "ultimate employment decisions."
The 5th Circuit concluded a plaintiff, a black woman, pleaded sufficient facts to show that she experienced an employment decision within the scope of Title VII, satisfying what is often referred to as the "adverse action" element of a Title VII claim of disparate treatment. A similar case is currently before the U.S. Supreme Court.
In the case that reached the 5th Circuit, the plaintiff, a school administrator, brought a discrimination claim on the basis of race and sex against a Mississippi school district under Title VII and 42 U.S.C. Section 1981—statutes that courts interpret consistently with one another. The plaintiff challenged the school district's decision not to pay for her attendance at a training program for prospective school superintendents while allegedly...
QUEENSLAND— A nurse in Australia has been formally reprimanded after admitting he submitted forged documents to Qantas (QF) in an attempt to secure a refund for a non-refundable airline ticket. Th...