A New York federal court not only recently dismissed a pregnancy discrimination lawsuit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), but it also accused the agency of suing first and gathering the details later.
“J’accuse!” is not enough in court. Evidence is required," the court opinion stated.
In EEOC v. Bloomberg L.P., Judge Loretta Preska, who issued the ruling, noted that the EEOC claim was based on the theory that the financial news corporation, owned by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, did not provide a sufficient "work-life balance" for mothers working there. She wrote:
The law does not mandate 'work-life balance.' It does not require companies to ignore employees’ work-family tradeoffs—and they are tradeoffs—when deciding about employee pay and promotions. It does not require that companies treat pregnant women and mothers better or more leniently than others. All of these things may be desirable, they may make business sense, and they may be 'forward-thinking.' But they are not required by law. The law simply requires fair treatment of all employees.
After the ruling, EEOC attorney Raechel Adams said: "We look forward to proceeding with the individual claims and will assess our options."
Despite this one ruling, the EEOC has been racking up a success lawsuit/settlement track record in pursuing a record number of discrimination claims. Employers, don't be caught off guard. Protect yourself today by obtaining a copy of Personnel Concepts' EEO Compliance Program and develop an in-company program to prevent harassment and discrimination.