Marathon Settles $9M Class Action over Unpaid On-Call Refinery Shifts
Marathon Refining Logistics Services settled a $9 million class action over unpaid on‑call “Primary Relief” shifts affecting 748 operators and lab workers at its Los Angeles refinery. The practice required employees to stay available for two‑hour windows without pay unless called in, a condition plaintiffs said violated California reporting‑time‑pay rules. After a three‑year litigation, the settlement—pending final approval on April 27, 2026—delivers roughly $8,800 per worker, representing about 37 percent of the estimated $24 million liability. The case highlights growing legal risk for oil‑and‑gas firms over unpaid standby time.
EEOC Sues Nonprofit for Allegedly Rejecting Deaf Applicant over Disability
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit on March 24 against Indiana nonprofit Damar Services, alleging it rejected a deaf applicant for a housekeeping role after learning of his disability. The EEOC claims Damar’s phone‑screen guide asked about hearing and...
Employers Deploy Job Protection Measures Amid Widespread AI Layoffs
A Gallagher survey of 1,250 firms shows more than half are rolling out job‑protection measures such as AI training, role‑profile updates, and AI‑focused hiring as AI adoption accelerates. Sixty‑two percent already provide on‑the‑job AI training, while 56% have revised role...
'Careerfishing': The New Hiring Trend That's Fooling Employers
A new GCheck report reveals that 93% of jobseekers are engaging in “careerfishing,” systematically fabricating qualifications to win roles. The most common tactics include exaggerating expertise (61%), inflating past impact (47%), and adjusting employment dates (45%). Pressure from a hyper‑competitive...
Nonbinary Doctor Sues NYC Health + Hospitals Alleging Forced Identity Concealment
Danielle Peterson, a nonbinary dermatology resident, filed a federal lawsuit against NYC Health + Hospitals alleging they forced her to conceal her gender identity, subjected her to harassment, and terminated her contract despite independent medical clearances. The complaint details directives...
EEOC Sues Grocery Chain for Firing Nursing Employee over Water Bottle
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit against Roundy's Supermarkets, the operator of Pick ’n Save and Metro Market stores, alleging the company fired a nursing employee who kept a water bottle at her workstation. The employee, a cake...
Progressive Defeats ERISA Challenge to Tobacco and Vaccine Surcharges
On March 20, 2026, a federal judge in Ohio dismissed all five ERISA claims brought by Progressive employees challenging tobacco‑free and COVID‑19 vaccine premium discounts. The court held that Progressive’s wellness program satisfied the “full reward” requirement without retroactive reimbursements...
Court Reverses Sergeant's Termination over Flawed Fitness-for-Duty Evaluation
An appeals court in Tennessee reinstated Sergeant Vatisha Evans‑Barken after finding her termination based on a flawed fitness‑for‑duty psychological evaluation. The assessment, performed by Dr. Emily Davis, concluded she was unfit despite normal test results and no DSM‑listed impairment. The...
How to Improve Frontline Engagement
Frontline workers often lack access to corporate email or desktop systems, causing traditional employee surveys to miss this critical segment. Research from HSD Metrics shows email‑based surveys achieve only 5‑30% response rates among frontline staff, leading to under‑representation and costly...
The Career Ladder Is Disappearing. Are Taxes Making It Worse?
Former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak warned that AI is eroding entry‑level jobs, citing a 16% drop in hiring for AI‑exposed roles and a 25% decline at the 15 largest US tech firms. He argues apprenticeships and AI literacy are...
Court Backs AccentCare After It Fires Injured Worker over Pre-Injury Misconduct
The Tennessee Court of Workers' Compensation Claims ruled that AccentCare's termination of home‑health worker L'Keshia Watson was lawful because a termination request had been filed 17 days before her June 5, 2025 injury. The court denied Watson temporary disability benefits but...
Walmart Worker Loses Lawsuit After Accepting Workers' Comp for Parking Lot Injury
The Alabama Supreme Court upheld Walmart’s defense that an employee who was jogging off‑duty and hit by a coworker’s truck must rely exclusively on workers’ compensation. Phillip Duke had accepted medical and disability benefits after the October 2, 2024 accident, and the...
Panda Express Allegedly Kept Accused Harasser, Fired Women Who Complained
A federal lawsuit filed in Chicago accuses Panda Express of repeatedly transferring a cook accused of sexual harassment while firing two women who reported him. The plaintiff, Esmeralda Contreras, alleges the harasser was protected as a top performer and that...
NJ Supreme Court Rules Employer Can't Swap Wages for Free Apartment
The New Jersey Supreme Court unanimously ruled that employers cannot replace lawful wages with informal benefits such as a rent‑free apartment. The decision arose from Sergio Lopez’s claim that Marmic LLC stopped paying him after an invalid Social Security number...
Court Rules Amazon Cannot Exclude Mandatory Pre-Shift Screenings From Pay
The Illinois Supreme Court ruled that the state’s Minimum Wage Law requires payment for mandatory pre‑shift activities, rejecting the federal Portal‑to‑Portal Act exemption. The decision stemmed from a lawsuit by Amazon warehouse workers who were unpaid for COVID‑19 health screenings...
34-Year IBM Exec Sues Tech Giant over Age and Origin Bias
IBM senior consulting executive Joseph Msays, a 65‑year‑old veteran of more than three decades, filed a lawsuit in March 2026 alleging age and Lebanese‑American origin discrimination. He claims the company repeatedly passed him over for promotion despite his unit delivering...
Employee Sues Tesla for Firing Her After Seizures at Work
Tesla faces a federal lawsuit alleging it fired Lakeisha Ward, a post‑order support employee with sickle‑cell disease, after she suffered multiple seizures at work. The complaint lists ten claims, including disability discrimination, failure to accommodate a physician‑requested shift reduction, retaliation,...
Hospital Pulls Union Recognition After Decertification Vote, Appeals Court Agrees
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit ruled that a Kansas City hospital did not violate the National Labor Relations Act when it withdrew recognition of the SEIU after a decertification vote, even though the NLRB had not...
Former Transamerica VP Sues, Alleging Retaliation After Depression Disclosure
Former Transamerica Regional Vice President Chad Butler filed a federal lawsuit alleging the insurer retaliated after he disclosed depression and suicidal thoughts. He claims his new supervisor imposed unprecedented in‑person meeting quotas and sales targets not applied to peers, then...
Cashier Sues Sam's Club, Alleges Supervisors Laughed at Harassment Complaint
A Black Sam's Club cashier in Tuscaloosa alleges she faced religious‑based harassment and discrimination after coworkers mocked her Holiness Christian faith. She says supervisors laughed when she reported the behavior and the company failed to investigate. After a year of...
Creativity over Coding: The New Preference in the AI Era
A Resume.org poll shows 57% of hiring managers now value creative skills—especially thinking, communication, and storytelling—over technical abilities. Over the past five years, appreciation for creativity rose to 68%, while coding’s perceived value fell 14% as AI automates code generation....
Class Action Accuses Danaher of Turning DEI Into Hiring Quotas
A class‑action lawsuit filed in March alleges Danaher Corporation turned its DEI hiring program into a quota system, requiring 50% of interview slates to be women or people of color. The complaint says the centralized talent‑acquisition team delayed or escalated...
Tyson Workers Sue Alleging HR Ignored Racial Threats, Fired Them
Two maintenance workers at Tyson's Ringgold, Virginia plant filed federal lawsuits alleging severe racial harassment, threats—including a noose, a loaded gun, and knives—and retaliation after reporting to HR. Both claim HR ignored repeated complaints, suspended them, and terminated them despite...
Court Revives Pension Claims Against Kellogg and FedEx over Outdated Data
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit revived class‑action lawsuits against Kellogg (now Kellanova) and FedEx, alleging their pension plans used mortality tables from the 1960s‑70s to calculate joint‑and‑survivor annuities. The outdated tables underestimate retirees’ life expectancy, reducing...
Ford Slapped with New Harassment Lawsuit at Chicago Plant with Troubled Past
Ford Motor Company is being sued over alleged sexual harassment at its Chicago Assembly Plant, where a worker says a supervisor made explicit remarks from 2021 and retaliation followed after she reported it. The complaint, filed March 13, alleges the...
Mars Petcare Sued for Firing Worker Days After Accommodation Request
Mars Petcare US faces a federal lawsuit alleging it terminated a forklift driver just days after he submitted a request for FMLA leave and reasonable accommodations for a lumbar spine condition. The complaint claims the company failed to engage in...
Former Driver Sues Krispy Kreme for Ignoring Disability Requests Twice
Former Krispy Kreme driver Tyshawn Robinson has filed a federal lawsuit alleging the doughnut chain ignored two disability‑accommodation requests and then terminated him in retaliation. The complaint, filed March 13, 2026 in the Eastern District of North Carolina, cites violations...
Worker Sues Panasonic Energy, Alleges HR Fumbled Harassment Response
Harper Coté, a former apprentice at Panasonic Energy’s Kansas plant, filed a federal lawsuit alleging sexual harassment by a coworker and her production supervisor, along with inadequate HR investigations and retaliation. The coworker remained on site for weeks after the...
AI Creating More Jobs than Cutting Them, Study Says
A new Snowflake study of 2,050 leaders across ten countries finds AI is generating more jobs than it eliminates, with 77% of firms reporting net hiring and only 46% seeing cuts. The strongest gains appear in IT operations, cybersecurity and...
Employee Sues Insurer for FMLA Retaliation After Prayer Mistaken for Sleeping
Cameron Nasser, an investment operations analyst at OneAmerica Financial, filed a federal lawsuit alleging retaliation after taking FMLA leave to care for his dying mother. Upon returning, his role was downgraded, performance‑improvement plans were issued, and he was ultimately terminated...
Worker Sues Lockheed Martin over Alleged Racial Slur, Escalating Retaliation
Lockheed Martin’s Sikorsky facility in Stratford, Connecticut, faces a federal lawsuit filed by 70‑year‑old quality‑control inspector Carnell Artis, who alleges he was subjected to a racial slur, disability mockery, and ongoing retaliation after reporting the incidents. The complaint details harassment,...
Court Orders Healthcare Employer to Pay $800K+ in Pension Arrears
The U.S. District Court for D.C. granted summary judgment to the Service Employees International Union National Industry Pension Fund, ordering Hamilton Park OPCO to pay more than $800,000 in unpaid pension contributions. The dispute centered on the employer’s failure to make...
Court Tosses Veteran's Discrimination Suit over Supervisor's Damaging Reference
A federal court in Washington, D.C., dismissed veteran attorney Arthur Ayo‑Aghimien II's discrimination lawsuit against his ICE supervisor, Mary‑Jean Lambert, with prejudice on all five counts. The plaintiff alleged that Lambert’s derogatory remarks and a damaging reference caused the rescission of...
NJ Court Expands School District Liability for Alleged Teacher Sexual Abuse
New Jersey’s Supreme Court ruled that public school districts can face vicarious liability for teachers’ alleged sexual abuse, even when the conduct occurs outside the traditional scope of employment. The decision overturns prior rulings that granted broad immunity under the...
Court Tosses Fired DEIA Officer's Lawsuit over Trump DEI Order
U.S. District Court for D.C. dismissed all four claims filed by Neonu Jewell, former Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer at the Development Finance Corporation, after her termination following President Trump's executive order to dismantle federal DEIA programs. The order led...
Employee Sues MSC Cruises for Denying Remote Work It Once Approved
A former MSC Cruises director alleges the cruise line approved her remote work in late 2024 without any paperwork, then later denied the same arrangement as a disability accommodation, triggering a federal lawsuit. The complaint cites race and disability discrimination,...
GenAI to Hit Women's Jobs More than Men's, ILO Warns
The International Labour Organisation warns that generative AI will disproportionately affect women’s jobs, citing occupational segregation, under‑representation in STEM, and embedded gender bias as key drivers. Women are exposed to GenAI in 88% of countries, and female‑dominated occupations are almost...
CEO Faith in C-Suite Slips Amid Future Readiness Concerns
Russell Reynolds Associates’ Leadership Confidence Index shows CEO confidence in their C‑suite has slipped sharply, with the overall Future Readiness score falling to 64.0 in 2025 from a 75.1 peak in 2021. Executives are increasingly doubtful that their top teams...
Businesses Rush to Rehire Staff After Regretted AI-Driven Cuts
A Careerminds survey of 600 HR leaders shows two‑thirds of firms that cut staff for AI reasons are already rehiring. Roughly one‑third have restored 25‑50% of the eliminated roles, while another 36% have rehired over half, often within six months....
Court Rules Employer Can't Zero Out Retired Officer's Disability Pay
The Connecticut Appellate Court’s decision in Martinoli v. Stamford Police Department reinforces that retirement does not extinguish workers’ compensation rights. Retired officer Louis Martinoli filed a heart‑related claim that later expanded to atrial fibrillation and stroke in 2015. When the...
Appeals Court Revives Race Bias Lawsuit Thrown Out over Five-Day Late Filing
The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals revived Phillip Beazer’s Title VII race‑bias lawsuit after finding he qualified for equitable tolling. The court held that Beazer exercised reasonable diligence despite his attorney’s abandonment and a Category 4 hurricane that delayed mail delivery. By...
Delaware Court Hammers Financial Advisor with $765K for Breaching Non-Solicitation Agreement
A Delaware Court of Chancery ordered former Blue Rock advisor James Whalen to pay $765,103 after he poached clients and stole confidential data. The court upheld a three‑year non‑solicitation clause and classified the extracted client lists as trade secrets. Damages were...
Employer's Workplace Violence Termination Backfires when Key Evidence Falls Apart
A Louisiana appellate court upheld the reinstatement of Sadra Hamilton, a long‑tenured water board supervisor, after her employer failed to substantiate a workplace‑violence claim. The board alleged Hamilton brandished scissors during a confrontation with a subordinate, but testimony showed she...
Worker Sues Kinder Morgan for $25M Alleging Race Discrimination, Retaliation
Winston R. Gray, a longtime Kinder Morgan employee, filed a federal lawsuit alleging he was terminated after raising race‑discrimination concerns and replaced by a white worker. The complaint, filed March 10, 2026 in the Southern District of Mississippi, claims Gray faced harsher scrutiny,...
Marriott Faces Lawsuit for Allegedly Firing Employee Who Reported Discrimination
Marriott International is facing a federal lawsuit alleging it terminated an assistant rooms operations manager who reported workplace discrimination. The plaintiff, Roaldo Sulejmani, claims his complaints about race and gender bias were ignored, and he was subjected to intimidation, restricted...
Lawsuit Alleges Rocket Mortgage HR Botched Disability Accommodation at Every Turn
Rocket Mortgage is facing a federal lawsuit alleging that its human‑resources department systematically mishandled disability accommodations, FMLA leave, and return‑to‑work processes for senior analyst Ashley Isberg. The complaint details denied remote‑work requests, reassignment of duties, a pressured resignation offer, and...
Organisations Fall Short in Developing Change Communication Strategies
Gallagher's 2026 Employee Communications Report reveals that 61% of organisations lack a formal change communication strategy, despite 57% ranking it as a critical competency for the next year. The absence of structured narratives, channel plans, and adoption metrics forces internal...
Levi Strauss Faces Age Bias Suit After Allegedly Refilling Axed Role
Levi Strauss & Co. faces a federal age‑discrimination lawsuit after terminating senior product‑manager Ajay Kapil, claiming his role was eliminated in a workforce reduction. The filing alleges Levi quickly backfilled the same responsibilities with contractors, suggesting the position was never...
New Class Action Accuses Adobe of Paying Women Less, Then Retaliating
Adobe and staffing firm Talentburst are facing a class‑action lawsuit alleging systematic gender pay discrimination and retaliation. Former SMB Licensing Lead Anna Buntger claims women were paid less than men for equal work, that her supervisor made harassing comments and...
United Airlines Faces Mass Lawsuit over Vaccine Accommodation Policy
A Fifth Circuit appeals court cleared the path for a class‑action lawsuit against United Airlines, allowing over 2,200 customer‑facing employees who received religious vaccine exemptions to sue collectively. United placed those workers on unpaid leave while permitting non‑customer‑facing staff to...
