Press & News

Gerald Maatman Published in Business Insurance
10/17/2006

The October 16 issue of Business Insurance includes an article by Gerald Maatman (“Supreme Court rulings score a worker trifecta”) about the surprising employee-friendly discrimination rulings during the 2005-2006 U.S. Supreme Court term. Any expectations that President Bush’s two justice appointments would make for a more conservative and business-friendly legal environment in federal courts, says Jerry, were defied on the employment liability practices playing field.

The most significant ruling was the Supreme Court’s June 22 decision in Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway Co. vs. Sheila White, which established a new standard for what constitutes actionable conduct under the anti-retaliation provisions of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.  The Court held that acts short of termination or demotion, such as a less appealing job transfer, can establish a retaliation claim. Jerry predicts that this ruling will undoubtedly increase the number of retaliation claims and make it more difficult for employers to litigate and defend against them.

Jerry cites two other cases which were decided in favor of the employee. In Jenifer Arbaugh vs. Y&H Corp, the Supreme Court determined that the 15-employee threshold for jurisdiction under Title VII does not determine federal court jurisdiction, meaning that if an employer does not raise this defense by the end of trial, the defense is forever waived. In Anthony Ash et al. vs. Tyson Foods Inc., the Supreme Court rejected the “jump off the page and slap you in the face” standard in comparing employee qualifications when a worker sues for discriminatory denial of a promotion. By not suggesting a proper standard for a federal court to utilize in determining viability of such claims, the Court lowered the standard for plaintiffs and the bar to win their cases.

These decisions, says Jerry, all expand protections for worker rights, and it remains to be seem if that shift in the Supreme Court’s view of employment statutes will continue for the upcoming 2006-2007 term.