Latest news with #employmentDiscrimination
Bloomberg
4 days ago
- Politics
- Bloomberg
‘Reverse Discrimination' Ruling Is a Win for the Rule of Law
White individuals and straight people do not need to meet a higher burden of proof than members of minority groups to prevail in employment discrimination suits, the Supreme Court held Thursday. The immediate effect is to make so-called 'reverse discrimination' claims easier to bring. However, the decision also solidifies the existing legal framework for workplace discrimination — a framework that the court's ultra-conservative justices would like to upend. The result is not so much a win for conservatives or liberals as for legal stability. The case, Ames v. Ohio, arose when a straight White woman employed by the Ohio Department of Youth Services applied for a management position, which instead went to a lesbian candidate. She was subsequently demoted, and her old job was given to a gay man. Ames sued, alleging these decisions amounted to employment discrimination.
Fox News
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Trump-appointed federal judge rules against Biden-era sex-based employment discrimination guidance
A Trump-appointed federal judge slapped down portions of Biden-era Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidance that claims Title VII protections against sex-based employment discrimination include the concepts of sexual orientation and gender identity. The ruling, signed by Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk of the U.S. District Court for the Northwestern District of Texas, declares that language in the guidance that defines "sex" in Title VII as encompassing sexual orientation and gender identity is "contrary to law." The ruling declares the same regarding "all language defining 'sexual orientation' and 'gender identity' as a protected class." "Sex-based discrimination under Title VII includes employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity," part of the EEOC's Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace reads. "Accordingly, sex-based harassment includes harassment based on sexual orientation or gender identity, including how that identity is expressed." The guidance notes that, "The contents of this document do not have the force and effect of law, are not meant to bind the public in any way, and do not obviate the need for the EEOC and its staff to consider the facts of each case and applicable legal principles when exercising their enforcement discretion." The ruling comes in a legal challenge lodged by the Heritage Foundation — a conservative D.C. think tank — and the state of Texas. "The Biden EEOC tried to compel businesses – and the American people – to deny basic biological truth," Dr. Kevin Roberts, president of the Heritage Foundation and Heritage Action for America, said in a statement, noting that "thanks to the great state of Texas and the work of my Heritage colleagues, a federal judge said: not so fast. READ THE JUDGE'S ORDER – APP USERS, CLICK HERE: "This ruling is more than a legal victory. It's a cultural one," he added. "It says no – you don't have to surrender common sense at the altar of leftist ideology. You don't have to pretend men are women. And you don't have to lie to keep your job. Heritage is doing exactly what the conservative movement needs to do: stop apologizing, start suing, and take back institutions." The White House called it a "major win for women and commonsense." The judge "confirmed what the Trump Administration consistently maintains: government-imposed DEI policies requiring bathroom, dress, and pronoun accommodations are illegal," White House spokesman Harrison Fields told Fox News Digital. On Inauguration Day earlier this year, President Donald Trump issued an executive order declaring it U.S. policy "to recognize two sexes, male and female." That order called for rescinding guidance documents, or portions of documents, that clash with the order. The EEOC's Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace was specifically mentioned in the order. However, after Trump issued the order, EEOC Commissioners Charlotte Burrows, Jocelyn Samuels and Kalpana Kotagal said in a joint statement that "like all workers, LGBTQI+ workers — including transgender workers — are protected by federal law and entitled to the full measure of America's promise of equal opportunity in the workplace." Samuels and Burrows later said in January they had been informed by the White House that Trump was removing them from their roles as EEOC commissioners. The EEOC notes on its website that it needs a quorum to vote on rescinding guidance documents. "As of January 28, 2025, the EEOC no longer has a quorum of its bipartisan leadership panel of Commissioners, following the departures of two Commissioners. The Commission panel currently is comprised of Republican Acting Chair Andrea Lucas (designated as Acting Chair by President Trump on January 20, 2025) and Democrat Commissioner Kalpana Kotagal," the website explains. The Texas attorney general's office and the EEOC did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Fox News Digital on Friday.
New York Times
08-05-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Agency Moves to Fire a Judge Who Rejected a Trump Directive
The Equal Opportunity Employment Commission is seeking to fire the administrative judge who became of symbol of resistance after she spoke out against a Trump administration directive for the agency to pause its discrimination investigations regarding transgender people. The judge, Karen Ortiz, received notice on Wednesday that she was being placed on paid administrative leave pending the process to remove her from the position she's held for more than six years. The commission enforces laws against employment discrimination in the federal government and the private sector. In letters reviewed by The New York Times, Ms. Ortiz's supervisor, New York District Office Acting District Director Arlean Nieto, said she was seeking to terminate Ms. Ortiz for 'conduct unbecoming of a federal employee' and failing to follow the agency's email policy. Ms. Ortiz gained national attention in February when someone leaked her email to the commission's acting chairwoman, Andrea Lucas, calling on her to resign. Ms. Ortiz accused Ms. Lucas of following the 'illegal and unethical orders of our president' and violating the Constitution. 'I will not compromise my ethics and my duty to uphold the law,' Ms. Ortiz wrote in the email, which she copied to about 1,000 of her colleagues. She acknowledged that she was making herself a target for the administration. The email went viral among those looking for signs of resistance to the Trump administration's deep cuts to the federal government and its targeting of marginalized groups. The agency turned off Ms. Ortiz's email access and sent her a letter of reprimand warning that she had violated agency policy requiring all-employee emails sent to other offices be pre-approved by the office director. In response, Ms. Ortiz sent more emails calling on Ms. Lucas to resign and accusing her of misconduct, including one that asked Ms. Lucas to ponder what she was allowing herself to be a part of and then linked to a video of the Tears for Fears song 'Everybody Wants to Rule the World.' The content of the emails, Ms. Nieto wrote, was 'profoundly unprofessional.' The Equal Opportunity Employment Commission sent Ms. Ortiz the letters a few weeks after President Trump mentioned her — though not by name — in an executive order on April 18 that aimed to make it easier to fire government workers who 'oppose presidential policies.' The commission declined by email to comment. Ms. Ortiz has 15 days to reply to the accusations. She said she intends to fight but has no regrets. 'These are quite literally trumped-up charges,' she said. 'I stand behind my actions, which support the rule of law and the trans community.'
