Early-stage court victories for White employees’ DEI program-related hostile work environment claims have cracked open the door to more use of this legal tactic, as employers brace for more suits over diversity initiatives.

The latest such case to inch forward is a federal lawsuit by Danielle Johnson, an Oregon Department of Environmental Quality employee, who said the agency’s diversity, equity, and inclusion program created workplace “anti-White bias” and led to her being demoted and vilified as racist.

Her hostile work environment claims survived a motion-to-dismiss ruling earlier this month, similar to cases brought by former Penn State Professor Zack De Piero and former City of Seattle employee Joshua Diemert. Like Johnson, those employees alleged race-related hostility at work that extended outside of DEI training sessions themselves.

The hostile work environment cases add to a bevy of legal challenges and public scrutiny against DEI programs—ranging from workplace anti-bias training to fellowships, hiring, and business funding programs designed to boost women and minorities. The anti-DEI movement is expected to grow as Donald Trump returns to the White House, bringing advisors, Cabinet picks, and a vice president who have vocally opposed DEI.

Ultimately winning a lawsuit like Johnson’s should require extreme examples of repeated racial harassment...

Read Full Story: https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiswFBVV95cUxQckxFR2Y1X2hSWUtEMXd5V2px...