More than 550 engineers at Great Britain’s Romec, a facilities and maintenance employer, recently called for strike action, part of an escalating dispute over alleged bullying management.
According to a report from the Communications Workers Union (CWU), the dispute began over management misuse of information from tracking devices in engineers' vans. Cases have allegedly emerged where managers have trawled detailed data to find tiny discrepancies in order to victimize, discipline or sack staff. (WCxKit)
Romec has since allegedly intimidated staff and unilaterally changed their working hours, leading CWU to believe it is acting unlawfully by withholding pay and initiating redundancies without consultation.
Ray Ellis, CWU national official, said, "Romec is acting like Big Brother and has completely lost the trust of its staff. The regime of intimidation and culture of psychologically bullying engineers is making the working atmosphere intolerable for our members.
"We believe Romec is now acting unlawfully by withholding pay from staff after unilaterally changing their hours — for example from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. shifts to unsociable 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. shifts. If staff do not, or cannot, work the new hours, their letters offering money if people leave the company is outside of redundancy regulations. All this is putting pressure on staff already being harassed by managers using tracker data. There are legal double standards here — if the union took unlawful action, the company could get a court injunction, but with the company's actions we will have to go through lengthy tribunal proceedings. We urge management to engage in meaningful talks. However our confidence in Romec keeping to agreements is very low," Ellis said.
Dave Ward, CWU deputy general secretary, added, "Romec's aggressive behavior toward experienced engineering staff is shocking. We urge the company to put its energy into resolving this situation instead of further intimidating staff. This will only be resolved through talks and that is where we want to be." (WCxKit)
Romec is owned by Royal Mail Group and Balfour Beatty. A Royal Mail spokesman noted no employees of Royal Mail Group are involved in this action. “We are very confident that the robust contingency plans we have in place will ensure there will be no impact on our customers from the planned industrial action," the spokesperson said.
Author Robert Elliott, executive vice president, Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers Compensation costs, including airlines, healthcare, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. See www.LowerWC.com for more information. Contact: Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers comp issues.
©2011 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
In the new Global Report on Equality at Work 2011, the International Labor Office (ILO) is stating that in spite of continuous positive advances inanti-discrimination legislation, the global economic and social crisis has led to a higher risk of discrimination against some groups like migrant labour.
“Economically adverse times are a breeding ground for discrimination at work and in society more broadly. We see this with the rise of populist solutions,” said ILO Director-General Juan Somavia, adding, “this threatens painstaking achievements of several decades.” (WCxKit)
The report entitled
Equality at Work: The Continuing Challenge, cites equality bodies which receive increased numbers of complaints, showing that workplace discrimination has become more varied, and discrimination on multiple grounds is becoming the rule rather than the exception.
It also warns against a tendency during economic downturns to give lower priority to anti-discrimination policies and workers’ rights in practice. “Austerity measures and cutbacks in the budget of labor administrations and inspection services, and in funds available to specialized bodies dealing with non-discrimination and equality, can seriously compromise the ability of existing institutions to prevent the economic crisis from generating more discrimination and more inequalities,” the report says.
According to the report, the lack of reliable data in this context makes it difficult to assess the exact impact of these measures. It therefore calls on governments to put into place human, technical, and financial resources to improve data collection on discrimination at the national level.
The report also notes that new forms of discrimination at work arise while the old challenges remain at best only partially answered.
Among the key findings of the report:
1. Significant progress has been made in recent decades in advancing gender equality in the world of work. However, the gender pay gap still exists, with women’s wages being on average 70 to 90 percent of men’s. While flexible arrangements of working schedules are gradually being introduced as an element of more family-friendly policies, discrimination related to pregnancy and maternity is still common.
2. Sexual harassment is a significant problem in workplaces. Young, financially dependent, single, or divorced women and migrants are most vulnerable, while men who experience harassment tend to be young, gay, or members of ethnic or racial minorities.
3. Combating racism is as relevant today as it ever was. Barriers impeding equal access to the labour market still need to be dismantled, particularly for people of African and Asian descent, indigenous peoples and ethnic minorities, and above all women in these groups.
4. Migrant workers face widespread discrimination in access to employment, and many encounter discrimination when employed, including access to social insurance programs.
5. Rising numbers of women and men experience discrimination on religious grounds, while discrimination based on political opinion tends to take place in the public sector, where loyalty to the policies of authorities in power can be a factor in access to employment.
6. Work-related discrimination continues to exist for many of the world’s 650 million persons with disabilities as their low employment rate reveals.
7. Persons with HIV/AIDS can suffer discrimination through mandatory testing policies, or testing under conditions, which are not genuinely voluntary or confidential.
8. In the European Union, 64 per cent of those surveyed expected that the economic crisis would lead to more age discrimination in the labour market.
9. In a limited number of industrialized countries, discrimination based on lifestyle has emerged as a topical issue, especially in relation to smoking and
obesity. (WCxKit)
The Global Report recommends four priority steps to combat discrimination including the promotion of the universal ratification and application of the two fundamental ILO Conventions on equality and non-discrimination; the development and sharing of knowledge on the elimination of discrimination in employment and occupation; development of the institutional capacity of ILO constituents to more effectively implement the fundamental right of non-discrimination at work; and strengthening of international partnerships with major actors on equality.
1. Equality at Work: The Continuing Challenge, Global Report under the follow-up to the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, International Labour Conference, 100th Session 2011, International Labour Office, Geneva.
Author Rebecca Shafer, JD, President of Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. is a national expert in the field of workers compensation. She is a writer, speaker, and website publisher. Her expertise is working with employers to reduce workers compensation costs, and her clients include airlines, healthcare, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality, and manufacturing. See www.LowerWC.com for more information. Contact:RShafer@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers comp issues.
©2011 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
The Columbus (Ohio) Fire Division battalion chief who was the first female in that position has come up short in the discrimination lawsuit she filed against the city in federal court.
According to The Columbus Dispatch, U.S. District Judge Michael Watson dismissed Yolanda Arnold's claims that she had been harassed due to the fact she is black and that she had suffered retaliation because of her discrimination claims. Arnold also claimed she was humiliated and embarrassed. (WCxKit)
Watson ruled recently that Arnold did not offer specific proof of her allegations in three years of court proceedings that included a number of depositions of witnesses and presentations of exhibits like emails, newspaper stories and other documents.
According to Watson, a large amount of the evidence was hearsay, which was not admissible direct evidence of discrimination.
Arnold, 55, who is still a Columbus fire battalion chief, said recently that she is appealing the judges decision to dismiss her suit.
The lawsuit originated from allegations by city building inspectors in 2004 that fire inspectors under Arnolds command were missing inspections and collecting overtime pay.
Separate investigations by the Columbus police and fire divisions detected no wrongdoing. A third investigation, by a private attorney, reported management problems in the Fire Prevention Bureau, which Arnold oversaw, but it also found that claims of racial discrimination in the bureau were unfounded.
At the time of the third investigation, Fire Chief Ned Pettus accused Arnold of lying to investigators and suspended her for a week. She also was removed from the Fire Prevention Bureau.
Arnold filed the lawsuit in January 2008. Watsons ruling was in response to a request from the city for a summary judgment against Arnold.
Ten other Columbus firefighters who were employed as fire inspectors filed three similar discrimination lawsuits against the city in federal court. (WCxKit)
Watson dismissed a pair of those suits on March 31, the day he also threw out Arnolds. A third is pending.
Author Robert Elliott, executive vice president, Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers Compensation costs, including airlines, healthcare, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. See www.LowerWC.com for more information. Contact:Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers comp issues.
©2011 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com
Wal-Mart has agreed to pay $440,000 to a group of Hispanic employees in Fresno who say they were subjected to ethnic slurs and derogatory remarks by a co-worker.
The settlement was announced recently by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
The EEOC sued Wal-Mart and its affiliate Sam's Club in 2009, alleging the workers were being harassed and that Wal-Mart failed to halt the mistreatment in a timely manner a charge Walmart has denied. (WCxKit)
At least nine employees of Mexican descent and one, who is married to a Mexican, claim they endured ethnic slurs on a daily basis by a co-worker, who was also Hispanic. The workers, who provided food samples to customers, complained in April 2006, but no immediate action was taken, EEOC officials report.
Instead, the harassment intensified, according to Christine Park-Gonzalez, an EEOC program analyst in Los Angeles.
It was not until the workers filed a complaint with EEOC in October that Sam's Club fired the harasser in December 2006.
According to Wal-Mart spokesman Greg Rossiter, the company fired the worker once the full extent of the allegations was brought to the company's attention.
As part of the settlement, Wal-Mart also agreed to make changes in how it deals with these issues at its Fresno and Bakersfield Sam's Club stores. (WCxKit)
The company committed to a three-year agreement to provide training to employees regarding anti-discrimination laws; teach managers how to investigate and report harassment complaints; and create a tracking system for complaints.
Author Robert Elliott, executive vice president, Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers Compensation costs, including airlines, healthcare, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. See www.LowerWC.com for more information. Contact:Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers comp issues.
©2011 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com
Employers can be held liable for discriminatory conduct even if the individual responsible for the decision was not discriminatory but relied to a degree on those who were, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled recently, according to
www.BusinessInsurance.com
The courts unanimous ruling in
Vincent E. Staub vs. Proctor Hospital backs what is known as the “cats paw” theory of liability. (WCxKit)
According to the opinion, Mr. Staub, an angiography technician at Proctor Hospital in Peoria, Ill., was part of the U.S. Army Reserve, which mandated he attend drills one weekend a month and train on a full-time basis two to three weeks yearly.
Business Insurance reported a pair of supervisors was allegedly hostile to Staubs military obligations, and one allegedly made a false complaint to the hospitals VP of human resources, who partially relied on that information to fire Staub in 2004.
Staub sued the hospital through the Uniformed Services Employment and Re-Employment Rights Act of 1994, alleging his firing was motivated by hostile intent toward his military obligations. A jury deemed that military status was a motivating factor in Staubs discharge and awarded him $57,640 in damages.
In a turn of events, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago threw out the case, claiming that a cats paw case “could not succeed unless the no decision-maker exercised such ‘singular influence' over the decision-maker that the decision to terminate was the product of ‘blind reliance,' which was not the case involving this matter.
“Because the undisputed evidence established that (the HR VP) was not wholly depending on the advice of (the supervisor), the court held that Proctor was entitled to judgment,” the 7th Circuit ruled.
However, the Supreme Court overturned the appeals court. Proctor “contends that the employer is not liable unless the de facto decision-maker…is motivated by discriminatory animus,” the high court stated.
“If a supervisor performs an act motivated by anti-military animus that is intended by the supervisor to cause an adverse employment action, and if that act is a proximate cause of the ultimate employment action, then the employer is liable under USERRA,” the Supreme Court ruled.
The court ruled 8-0 in favor of overturning the 7th Circuit opinion, with Justices Samuel Alito Jr. and Clarence Thomas backing a concurring opinion, and Justice Elena Kagan not taking part in the decision. (WCxKit)
The high court remanded the case to the 7th Circuit with instructions to determine whether to reinstate the jury verdict or to seek another trial.
Author Robert Elliott, executive vice president, Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers Compensation costs, including airlines, healthcare, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. See www.LowerWC.com for more information. Contact:Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com or 860-553-6604.
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers comp issues.
©2011 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com
The U.S. Department of Labors Mine Safety and Health Administration has negotiated a settlement agreement with Comunidad Agricola Bianchi Inc. of San Juan,
Puerto Rico, in a discrimination case involving a miner employed by the companys operation in Rincon, Puerto Rico.
Jose A. Chaparro was fired from his job shortly after cooperating in an MSHA hazard complaint investigation at the mine.(WCxKit)
In August 2009, MSHA received an anonymous hazard complaint raising concerns about safety issues at the mine, including details about an unreported June 2009 accident at the mine involving Chaparro. As a result, MSHA launched a hazard complaint investigation. The same day that MSHA spoke with Chaparro about his accident, the mine superintendent fired him.
In a complaint filed with the Mine Safety and Health Review Commission, MSHA sought a finding that Chaparro was unlawfully discriminated against and discharged in violation of Section 105(c)(1) of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977, which states that miners, their representatives and applicants for employment are protected from retaliation for engaging in safety and/or health-related activities, such as identifying hazards, asking for MSHA inspections or refusing to engage in an unsafe act.
The complaint also sought Chaparros reinstatement to his position or a comparable one, $6,000 in back pay, all employment benefits, all medical and hospital benefits, and any and all other damages suffered and incurred by Chaparro as a result of the discriminatory discharge, as well as a $15,000 civil money penalty.
Following a hearing in February 2010, a judge ordered Chaparro temporarily reinstated to his job at the mine. In a second amended complaint, MSHA brought a claim of post-reinstatement retaliation against Comunidad Agricola Bianchi Inc. and three individual representatives of the mine.(WCxKit)
In settlement, the company agreed to permanently reinstate Chaparro to his job at the mine and to pay the full $6,000 in back wages due to Chaparro, as well as the full $15,000 penalty. The mine operator also agreed that it would not unlawfully discriminate against any miner in its employ for engaging in protected activity.
Author Robert Elliott, executive vice president, Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers Compensation costs, including airlines, healthcare, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. See www.LowerWC.com for more information.
Contact: Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
©2011 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
A 55-year-old Iowa woman will receive more than $2.3 million from her lawsuit against her employer.
According to the Associated Press, the Monroe County jury verdict came in the case filed by Debbie Erwine, of Batavia, against UGL Services Unicco Operations Co. and a past supervisor. WCxKit
Erwines lawsuit alleged she was subjected to sex discrimination while overseeing maintenance and cleaning crews at the Cargill plant in Eddyville.
According to one of the documents, Erwines supervisor demoted her in the summer of 2008 due to the fact he "needed a man in that position so that he would be able to understand the mechanical aspects."
Erwine was terminated in December 2008. She sued a little less than one year later.
According to a UGL spokeswoman, Erwine was let go for violating company policy. (WCxKit)
The verdict includes $400,000 for emotional distress and $100,000 toward physical pain.
Author Robert Elliott, executive vice president, Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers Compensation costs, including airlines, healthcare, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. See www.LowerWC.com for more information. Contact:Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com or 860-553-6604.
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers comp issues.
©2011 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
The Supreme Court recently increased the reach of the federal laws to combat job discrimination, ruling that employees are protected from illegal bias not just from a top decision maker, but from other supervisors too.
According to a report from The Los Angeles Times, the justices commented the crucial issue is whether illegal bias was a "motivating factor" in the choice to terminate an employee. Companies and public agencies are not shielded from liability, they concluded, simply due to the fact the supervisor who made the decision to fire a worker did so for valid reasons. If other supervisors are biased and influence the decision, the employer can be held at fault, they argued. (WCxKit)
For at least a decade, lower courts have had differing views as to whether the workplace civil rights laws should center narrowly on the single supervisor who makes hiring and firing decisions, or more broadly on the many supervisors who influence the outcome. By a unanimous vote, the high court chose the broad approach.
The decision restores a $57,640 jury verdict in favor of Vincent Staub, an Army reservist who was terminated from his employment as a medical technician at the Proctor Hospital in Peoria, Illinois. He contended a pair of his supervisors were biased against him because he was absent on weekends due to his military duties.
They claimed he put a "strain on the department," and others had "to bend over backwards to cover" for him.
The complaints go to the hospital's vice president for human resources. She looked into remarks that Staub was "abrupt" with others and was at times absent from his work location. She decided to terminate him.
Staub sued, relying on the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Act of 1994, which forbids discrimination against employees due to their military duties. Justice Scalia said this law is "very similar" to the other federal civil rights laws that forbid discrimination based on race, religion, sex or national origin. The pair of statutes is in play if the illegal bias was a "motivating factor" in the employers decision.
Though a jury ruled for Staub, the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago tossed out the verdict. Its decision discounted the comments of his direct supervisors and said the vice president for human resources acted by herself.
Then-U.S. Solicitor General Elena Kagan encouraged the court to listen to the case of Staub v. Proctor Hospital and to adopt the broader interpretation of the federal workplace discrimination laws. (WCxKit)
They did so in an 8-0 vote, with Kagan not voting.
Author Rebecca Shafer, JD, President of Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. is a national expert in the field of workers compensation. She is a writer, speaker, and website publisher. Her expertise is working with employers to reduce workers compensation costs, and her clients include airlines, healthcare, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality, and manufacturing. See www.LowerWC.com for more information. Contact:RShafer@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com or 860-553-6604.
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers comp issues.
©2011 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick recently signed an executive order to ban discrimination against transgender employees in state government.
The measure is written to add protections for "gender identity and expression" to existing rules against discrimination. It would cover all state agencies in the executive branch of government along with companies or organizations that contract with the state. (WCxKit)
Gunner Scott, executive director of the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition, stated workers should not have to fear that they could lose their jobs due to who they are.
Arline Isaacson of the Massachusetts Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus praised Patrick for signing the executive order but also sought legislation that would prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity in the private sector too.
Author Robert Elliott, executive vice president, Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers Compensation costs, including airlines, healthcare, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. See www.LowerWC.com for more information. Contact:Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com or 860-553-6604.
Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker or agent about workers comp issues.
©2011 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com.
A safety inspector in the Yukon is suing the CBC for publishing what he says is a malicious and professionally damaging attack on its web comment board. According to The Canadian Press, Robert Scott's weight, his competence and his credibility all come under fire in the post, which he says in his statement of claim clearly breaks the national broadcaster's own guidelines. The post names Scott and another man. The other man has not filed a defamation suit.
Scott says his ''ability to work in this community has been severely affected by these libelous statements,'' and he is suing the CBC for $125,000, plus legal expenses and interest. Scott works for the occupational health and safety branch of the Workers Compensation Board. He filed the claim after someone with the user name “BCHimself” posted a long comment on a story about workplace safety charges laid against Procon Mining and Tunnelling. (WCxKit)
Procon, a contracting company for Yukon Zinc Corp., is facing charges after the Oct. 2009 death of 20-year-old Paul Wentzell, who was struck and killed by an unoccupied vehicle on the Wolverine mine site. The charges allege the vehicle was parked on an incline and did not have a proper braking mechanism. In the comment, BCHimself said Yukon health and safety inspectors are ''unqualified to investigate let alone recommend charges be laid against contracting companies such as Procon.''
“BCHimself” goes on to say the inspectors have no previous law enforcement or investigative experience, but that several have union backgrounds ''and have made documented statements that they were out to 'get' contractors due to their not wanting union representation in the workforce.''
That is patently false, Scott says in his statement of claim, but someone reading BCHimself's post would read it as fact, not opinion. The lawsuit says the poster also suggests that overweight former police officers have no business investigating health and safety cases. This comment is ''malicious and cruel,'' Scott claims.
He says the attack on his personal and professional character was ''unsolicited . . . false, libelous, defamatory and filled with malice'' and would make a reasonable person think he has a ''vendetta against contractors.''
Scott read the post on Oct. 13, 2010, the day it was written, and says in his claim that he immediately reported it as abusive via the CBC's comments board. He says the post clearly broke the submission guidelines which list ''personal attacks and defamatory statements'' as unacceptable.
However, the lawsuit says it was still there the next day and wasn't taken down until Oct. 15, after Scott's lawyer called the CBC Whitehorse and CBC Yellowknife offices to complain. Since then, Scott says in his claim that he has demanded an apology and a retraction on the Web site, but that the CBC has done nothing. Even with an apology, Scott claims, the damage is done. (WCxKit)
''Once on the web, there was and is no method to retract the libelous statements,'' he says. ''Anyone reading those comments on the Web site can republish the message by reprinting it and sending it again and again.''
A case management conference for both parties is scheduled for Feb. 8.
Author Robert Elliott, executive vice president, Amaxx Risks Solutions, Inc. has worked successfully for 20 years with many industries to reduce Workers Compensation costs, including airlines, healthcare, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality and manufacturing. See www.LowerWC.com for more information. Contact: Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com or 860-553-6604.
©2011 Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. If you would like permission to reprint this material, contact Info@ReduceYourWorkersComp.com
Posted in
Communication with Employees, Employment Law Issues, Management Commitment, Union Issues |
