On June 23, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court, for the second time in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, affirmed the constitutionality of the University of Texas policy which considers the race of applicants as one factor in its admissions decisions. Justice Kennedy, writing for the majority, adopted an approach modeled on the 2003 High Court decision in Grutter v. Bollinger, which sanctioned … [Read more...] about High Court Approves Affirmative Action For Higher Education
No Running in the Halls! – Injury During Inside Track Practice Could Result in Liability for School District
In a case that cuts deep into a school district’s historic immunity for negligent supervision, the court in B.D. v. Downingtown Area School District, No. 15-6375 (E.D.Pa.Jun. 20, 2016), took the unusual step of finding that the improper handling of a track practice held inside and resulted in a student being injured could be a case of state-created danger under Section 1983, and falls within an … [Read more...] about No Running in the Halls! – Injury During Inside Track Practice Could Result in Liability for School District
Piecing Together Infertility Rights In The Workplace
Parental leave and the push to offer working parents more flexibility in the workplace is in the news a lot lately, yet less commonly do you hear news regarding workplace rights of an infertile employee. Infertility is a problem that impacts all areas of life – a person or couple suffering from infertility may struggle physically, emotionally, and financially in order to have a child. There is … [Read more...] about Piecing Together Infertility Rights In The Workplace
Department of Education Releases New Guidance for Equal Access to Career and Technical Programs
On June 15, 2016, Catherine Lhamon, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights and Johan Uvin, Deputy Assistant Secretary charged with duties to supervise Career and Technical Education (CTE) and Adult Education, jointly published “new” guidelines for ensuring the equal access of students regardless of sex to the full panoply of CTE programs. The guidelines are not new in the sense of creating new … [Read more...] about Department of Education Releases New Guidance for Equal Access to Career and Technical Programs
“New” Agency Interpretations Expand Definition of Sex Discrimination To Include Gender Identity
With recent guidance issued from the Obama Administration, a lot of focus has been given to the rights of transgender students in the context of public schools. But public and private sector employers beware; the same rules may have also applied to you all along. Several agencies: the EEOC, OSHA, and the DOJ to name a few, have all taken the position that Title VII prohibits discrimination on the … [Read more...] about “New” Agency Interpretations Expand Definition of Sex Discrimination To Include Gender Identity
Department of Labor Issues Final Rule for New Salary Standard for Overtime Pay
For more than two years, the United States Department of Labor (DOL) has been mulling over previously announced proposed changes to the federal regulation defining the amount of salary an employee must make in order for the employer to qualify for an exemption to the overtime pay rate mandated in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The final rule was issued on May 18, 2016. While many people … [Read more...] about Department of Labor Issues Final Rule for New Salary Standard for Overtime Pay
