Recently in Wrongful Termination Category

A local fast food franchise settled a class-action sexual harassment case late last month, ending years of alleged harassment, legal battles with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and of course, terrible jokes. According to the EEOC, they reached a settlement agreement with Mendota Restaurants, Inc., of Mendota, Ill.

The company runs a franchised Taco Bell/KFC on Route 34. They also allegedly enabled over a year's worth of sexual harassment that included multiple sexual assaults. At least five of the women complained to the local police before this lawsuit was filed on behalf of twelve victims. The store manager at fault reportedly also stooped to retaliation by discharging or constructively discharging those who complained.

The words "racism" and "discrimination" are probably giving the administrators and legal staff of Chicago Public Schools nausea at this point. Less than two weeks after a lawsuit alleged that a former principal's reforms at a Chicago school negatively impacted African-American students and staff, another lawsuit about reforms and racism has been served on the district, reports the Chicago Sun-Times.

For the last decade or so, CPS has carried out a number of "turnaround" programs at underperforming schools. For each school, the entire staff is sent packing and replaced with an entirely new team. The majority of these "turnarounds" have occurred at schools in the South and West Sides. These schools also employ the majority of African-American teachers.

Every writer has been there. They compose something brilliant. In their mind it is only rivaled by the greatest works of William Faulkner himself. Then the editor gets his hands on it. The end result is either full deletion or a rewritten piece that sounds nothing like the original. Your version of "The Sound and the Fury" becomes a mere whimper of indignation.

The fact is, if you write for a reputable newspaper or blog, an editor will change your articles. The sooner one becomes accustomed to the system, the easier their job becomes.

National department store chain Dillard’s, which has three locations in Illinois, will pay $2 million and undergo significant changes to their policies regarding disabled and sick leave policies. According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which brought the suit on behalf of Corina Scott, a former California employee, and an unknown number of others that may have been affected by Dillard’s policies, Dillard’s policies regarding disability leave violated a number of provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Beginning in 2005, Dillard’s adopted a new policy regarding sick leave that required employees to disclose their exact medical condition in order to be approved for leave - even if they had a doctor’s note. Those who took leave without providing specifics were terminated.

Let’s pull out that old cliché about smoke and fire. This is the fourth lawsuit to be filed by a former teacher from George Washington High School since now-retired principal Florence Gonzales took over the school and instituted sweeping changes that left many teachers unemployed and the racial composition of the school drastically altered.

This lawsuit, filed by formerly tenured teacher Michelle Nelson, alleged that she was fired because she is black. A district spokesperson told the Sun-Times that Nelson was fired for cause. What was that cause? She was sleeping at her ex-husband’s house, outside of Chicago, to care for her disabled and wheelchair-bound son.

The $100 million lawsuit started with the claims of four Pennsylvania women. Each claimed that they were paid less than their male counterparts. Some claimed that discrimination occurred after having a child or taking maternity leave. One claimed good old fashioned sexual harassment. The claims of these four women, filed in July, were joined on Monday by the claims of women in California, Kentucky, and of course, Illinois, reports Workforce.com.

Though we don't have specifics on the new allegations, we have plenty of information on the original lawsuit, thanks to Pharmalot. One of the original plaintiffs received a lower evaluation and pay increase than previous years after she took maternity leave. Another was denied a promotion while she was pregnant and also received a lower pay raise than previous years after the pregnancy.

Last month, we were asked, “Can I be fired for trashing the boss on social media?” The answer was a resounding maybe. Of course, no one likes a grey area. Since then, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), who had previously not addressed the issue extensively, came to a decision that finally brought a bit of clarity to the problem area of protected speech versus at will employment.

At will employees generally can be fired for any (legal) reason. So, isn’t it perfectly legal to terminate an employee that tweets zingers about the boss’ catering choices and other mishaps at work? A BMW salesman did exactly that, and was fired for it. He posted a picture on Facebook of hot dogs, chips, and water at a BMW event celebrating a new model, along with a sarcastic caption. On the same day, he posted a picture of a Land Rover that was driven up a hill, over a wall, and crashed into a pond. Both dealerships were owned by the same company.

A popular South Loop bar, the South Loop Club, is set to square off against the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission over claims that it fostered a culture that enabled the sexual harassment of female employees by owners and management. If the employees complained about their supervisors' behavior, they were allegedly terminated or forced to quit. Others quit after their complaints failed to remedy hostile work conditions.

A hostile work environment in a sexual harassment context isn't simply a boss who dislikes you. Instead, there must be severe and pervasive conduct that a reasonable employee would find intimidating. The harassment must rise to a level that interferes with your ability to work.

Examples of inappropriate conduct include:

O'Reilly Automotive Stores found itself in court last week, after the EEOC filed its third of three major employment discrimination lawsuits on one fateful Friday. The lawsuit alleges that the O'Reilly Auto Parts store in Beloit, Wis., fired its manager after refusing him time off to deal with a medical impairment.

The facts, as alleged by the EEOC, portray what might be a textbook example of a reasonable accommodation request by an employee. Heath Craft, the former manager of the Beloit branch, was diagnosed with a seizure disorder in February 2011. When he requested a month's leave to deal with the disorder, the company not only denied the request, but fired him on March 31, 2011.

The Chicago branch of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was busy last week. They announced three new lawsuits against local employers on Friday, including a disability discrimination case against St. Alexius Medical Center in Hoffman Estates. The hospital allegedly failed to reasonably accommodate the needs of a cognitively disabled greeter, and instead fired the employee.

When it comes to disabled employees, the Americans with Disabilities Act requires an employer to make efforts in good faith to accommodate the employee's needs, if it does not create an undue hardship for the employer.

How does that play into this case?