When a manager in Loves Park, Illinois got into an argument with a subordinate over her failure to complete paperwork, the employee explained that she must not have heard the deadline correctly, as she is hearing-impaired. Frustrated, the manager asked “How can you work when you cannot hear?” The employee responded with a question of her own: “Aren’t you being discriminatory?” That was enough, according to a recent Seventh Circuit decision, to trigger Title VII’s prohibition against retaliation. When the employee was subsequently terminated, she sued for retaliation (as well as disability discrimination). While the trial court kicked the case out on summary judgment, the Seventh Circuit reversed, instead ordering the case be tried.
Employee protections against retaliation are far-reaching. They are among the most common — and most costly — types of employment-related claims. Make sure your anti-harassment and discrimination policies cover retaliation, and make sure all managers are trained on this prevalent and sometimes counterintuitive area of the law.
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