In August 2010, Mark Hurd resigned as the CEO of Hewlett-Packard. That same week, he settled with a woman who claimed that she was sexually harassed while she was a contractor for Hewlett-Packard.Now, a letter detailing some of the alleged sexual harassment has been...
Year: 2011
Employees: We were discriminated against for avoiding strip clubs
Around this time of year, many employers throw holiday parties for their employees. Although social activities like this are a nice gesture, it should go without saying they cannot and should not be a basis for making employees feel discriminated against if they...
Blockbuster must pay $2 million to settle harassment and retaliation claims
Video-rental chain Blockbuster recently agreed to pay more than $2 million to settle claims that it permitted sexual harassment and racial discrimination against female employees at one of its East Coast facilities. Although the incidents that led to this outcome...
Marine alleges he was retaliated against
Detroit is far from any war zone, but we still have the men and women of our armed forces to thank for keeping us all safe and protecting out interests abroad. That is why a recent employment law story involving alleged employer retaliation may be of interest. The...
More controversy on Detroit Metropolitan Airport board
Once again, the Detroit Metropolitan Airport Authority has found itself embroiled in controversy.Last time, it concerned the dismissal of our client Turkia Awada Mullin, the former CEO who claims she was wrongfully terminated. This time, it concerns former chairwoman...
Are less attractive employees discriminated against?
It probably would not surprise most people in Detroit to learn that physically attractive people who work in sales are more likely to make a greater volume of sales and sell more products overall. That's common knowledge.However, one economics professor is raising an...
Professor’s quirk raises interesting employment law issue
If Detroit readers think bank to their college days, they will probably remember professors talking about tenure. Terms of tenure differ from school to school, but in general, tenure is additional job security offered to professors who have taught long enough and...
Former Detroit airport CEO alleges wrongful termination
A controversy has erupted over the dismissal of our client, Detroit Metro Airport CEO Turkia Awada Mullin. She was recently fired, but the board that voted to let her go has refused to articulate a reason for her dismissal.Mullin is now suing for wrongful...
Herman Cain accused of sexual harassment in former workplace
Many Detroit readers are probably already familiar with Herman Cain, the former Godfather's Pizza executive who, this fall, came out of nowhere to emerge as a leading contender for the Republican presidential nomination.News broke recently that Cain was accused of...
A new twist on an old issue — ageism
In our society, ageism is unlawful. An employer in Detroit, for example, could not look at an applicant's gray hair, think he is too old and refuse to hire him on that basis. Nor could he fire an employee simply for being too old; that would be age-based...