The former CFO for Proskauer Rose, a large law firm in New York, has sued it for disability discrimination. The former CFO, Elly Rosenthal, claims that the law firm demoted her and then fired her because she had breast cancer that required her to take medical leave. Ms. Rosenthal, who…
On July 6, 2011, the United States District Court of Maine in Bangor issued a decision that permits a disability discrimination lawsuit against Bath Iron Works (BIW) to go forward. A former employee of BIW, Guillermo Blanco, brought the lawsuit against BIW (which is owned by General Dynamics Corporation). The…
The Maine Human Rights Commission (MHRC) has found reasonable grounds to believe that Tamco Transportation, headquartered in Presque Isle, discriminated against Peter Freeman because of his bipolar disorder. Mr. Freeman worked for Tamco as a truck driver. When Mr. Freeman told the owner of Tamco that he had bipolar disorder,…
On March 24, 2011, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) finalized new regulations for the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Congress revamped the ADA in 2008. The president signed the revamped version into law in January 2009. The EEOC’s new regulations provide guidance to employers, employees, and courts on how…
On January 24, 2011, the Maine Human Rights Commission (MHRC) unanimously found that there were reasonable grounds to believe that Dudley’s Diner discriminated against Kelly Chipman because of her vision problems. The Diner, located in Belfast, Maine, fired Ms. Chipman on March 5, 2009 because of her vision problems. Dudley’s…
On November 9, 2010, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued final regulations to implement the Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act (GINA). According to the EEOC, “Congress enacted GINA with strong bipartisan support in 2008, in response to concerns that patients would decline to take advantage of the increasing availability of…
On November 1, 2010, the Maine Human Rights Commission (MHRC) found that Central City Sheet Metal, Inc. discriminated against Patrick Michaud because of his disability when it terminated his employment. Central City Sheet Metal terminated Mr. Michaud on November 25, 2008. Prior to his termination, Mr. Michaud had worked for…
On October 20, 2010 the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) held a public meeting to hear testimony about the way employers use credit history checks to screen job applicants. Some believe that credit checks have a disparate impact on minorities, women and the disabled. Opponents of the use of credit…
In a federal lawsuit, the former Town Manager of Stonington, Maine, Howard Willingham, claims that the Town discriminated against him on the basis of his disability. The Town filed a motion that asked the court to dismiss the case. The Town argued that Mr. Willingham did not file his lawsuit…
On November 21, 2009 the federal Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act (GINA) became effective. Under this new law, subject to a handful of exceptions, employers may not gather genetic information about their employees. Genetic information includes an employee’s family medical history. The law also forbids employers from discriminating against employees on…