Do You Know What a “sex-plus” Claim is?
What’s a “sex-plus” claim?
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals addressed only this question in Shazor v. Prof’l Transit Mgmt, decided last week. The plaintiff was an African American woman who was terminated. Her Title VII (Federal discrimination laws) lawsuit claims she was discriminated against based on her unique status as an African American woman. While the district court granted summary judgment in the employer’s favor, the Sixth Circuit reversed, permitting the case to move towards trial.
With regard to the “sex-plus” nature of the claim, the court stated as follows:” In the case now before us, both classifications- race and sex -are protected by Title VII. These characteristics do not exist in isolation. African American women are subjected to unique stereotypes that neither African American men nor white women must endure. And Title VII does not permit plaintiffs to fall between two stools when their claim rests on multiple protected grounds.”
Thus, discrimination claims can be based on an intersection of two or more protected categories. What does this mean for employers? Take good care to ensure employment decisions are based on legitimate reasons and don’t have anything to do with protected categories.
An additional note about the case worthy of mention: the evidence before the court consisted of, in large part, old emails from and between the plaintiff’s superiors calling her a “prima donna” and “a helluva bitch.” The court concluded these constituted circumstantial evidence of discriminatory behavior. So remember, be careful with emails! There is no such thing as permanently deleted. If you wouldn’t want to see it in court, don’t put it in an email, text message, or voicemail. Many of you have heard me preach this before.
Podcast: We had a tremendous response to this past Saturday’s podcast regarding an in depth discussion on the Marijuana Compassionate Use Act and its impact on the work environment. If you have not heard it please listen to it. It is only about 12 minutes or so and is important because of the changes that are coming on a national basis. Just as a reminder, go to www.pottsandassociates.com and click on “Podcast.”
