Schaefer Halleen, LLC is a Minneapolis Employment Law Firm You are having problems at work. Out of the blue, your new manager has put you on a performance improvement plan, or you just found out you are being paid $20,000 less than the male manager who had the job before you. You google employment lawyer and come up with hits from all over the country. Should you dial that 1-800 number, or look for someone local? Most of the time, you are … [Read more...]
The Department of Justice and Title VII: What You Should Know
By Nora Huxtable, Law Clerk | LGBT workers’ rights are under attack (again), and this time it’s the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) weighing in against LGBT employees. Last week, the DOJ filed an amicus curiae brief in a 2nd Circuit case called Zarda v. Altitude Express, urging the court not to read sexual orientation protection into Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title VII is the federal law that protects employees from … [Read more...]
The Legality of President Trump’s Ban of Transgender Military Service Members
By Peter G. Christian | President Trump issued via Twitter yesterday a ban on transgender people serving in the military. The abrupt proclamation both reversed the Pentagon’s announcement last year that transgender people could serve openly in the military and potentially set an entirely new precedent of banning such people regardless of their “out” status. The ban has been met with anger, fear, and sadness by transgender service members, … [Read more...]
Seventh Circuit Recognizes Protections for LGBT Employees under Title VII
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a landmark decision on the rights of LGBT employees, recognizing that the 1964 Civil Rights Act (Title VII) prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation. Title VII specifically prohibits discrimination in the workplace on the basis of race, color, sex and national origin, but it does not have express language preventing discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. But some cases have … [Read more...]
The Impact of the Presidential Election on the Workplace
By Lawrence P. Schaefer | President-elect Donald Trump will assume office in January 2017, after the most divisive, contentious and disturbing Presidential campaign, followed by the most surprising result, in our history. We’ve never been more divided as Americans. We who value diversity, tolerance, gender equity, and truly equal employment opportunities have never felt more threatened. Protecting our core principles must be a shared … [Read more...]
