Hostile Work Environment

In Southerland v. Phoenix Constructors JV, 2017 NY Slip Op 32027(U) (Sup. Ct. NY Cty. 156005/15 Sept. 26, 2017) (J. Kotler), the court (inter alia) denied defendants’ motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s sex-based hostile work environment claim. From the decision: Here, contrary to defendants’ argument, plaintiff has set forth with sufficient particularity that she was subject to…

Read More Sex-Based Hostile Work Environment Claim Survives Summary Judgment; Court Noted Co-Worker and Supervisor Called Plaintiff a “Bitch”
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In Pouncy v. Advanced Focus LLC, 2017 WL 428094 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 25, 2017), a race discrimination case, the court granted defendants’ motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s race-based hostile work environment claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. 1981, and the New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL). As…

Read More Hostile Work Environment Was Not “Because Of” Race; Summary Judgment Granted to Defendant
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A recent decision, Dudley v. New York City Housing Authority, 2017 WL 4315010 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 25, 2017), reaffirms the principle that a hostile work environment claim must arise from hostility because of a protected characteristic. In this case, plaintiff alleged that he “was subjected to a hostile work environment in retaliation for his prior protected…

Read More Court Dismisses “Retaliatory Hostile Work Environment” Claims
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In Gracia v. City of NY, 16-CV-7329, 2017 WL 4286319 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 26, 2017) (J. Caproni), the court held that a release signed by plaintiff – a female NYPD officer – to resolve a personal injury slip-and-fall case was broad enough to encompass claims for gender discrimination sexual harassment, hostile work environment, and retaliation. In…

Read More Personal Injury Release Held Broad Enough to Cover Employment Discrimination, Sexual Harassment, and Retaliation Claims
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In Lamarr-Arruz & Ansoralli v. CVS Pharmacy, Inc., 15-cv-04261, 2017 WL 4280690 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 26, 2017), the court denied defendant CVS’s motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s hostile work environment claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1981, the New York State Human Rights Law, and the New York City Human Rights Law. Here I will focus…

Read More Race-Based Hostile Work Environment Claims Survive Summary Judgment; Court Clarifies Scope of 42 U.S.C. § 1981
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From Mikolaenko v. New York University, 2017 WL 4174928 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 7, 2017) (J. Batts): Defendant also moves to dismiss on the grounds that Plaintiff failed to exhaust her administrative remedies because she first included allegations of a quid pro quo sexual relationship in her Complaint and did not include related allegations in her EEOC…

Read More “Quid Pro Quo” Sexual Harassment Claim Was Sufficiently Presented to the EEOC, Court Holds
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In Mayo-Coleman v. American Sugars Holding, Inc., 14-cv-0079, 2017 WL 4157379 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 18, 2017) (J. Crotty), the Southern District of New York (partially) adopted a Magistrate Judge’s Report & Recommendation to deny defendants’ motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s hostile work environment/sexual harassment claim. The court summarized the law: Proof of a hostile work…

Read More Hostile Work Environment/Sexual Harassment Claim Survives Summary Judgment
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In Duarte v. St. Barnabas Hospital, 2017 WL 4082307, at *17 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 13, 2017), the court held that material issues of fact precluded summary judgment for defendant on plaintiff’s disability and national origin-based hostile work environment claim. As to plaintiff’s hearing condition, the court noted: Here, Plaintiff has offered evidence that – during weekly…

Read More Accent- and Disability-Based Hostile Work Environment Claim Survives Summary Judgment
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In Yang Zhao v. Keuka College, 2017 WL 3917145 (W.D.N.Y., 2017), plaintiff – a U.S. Citizen of Chinese origin – alleged that she was denied tenure because of her ethnicity, race, and national origin. The court held that plaintiff did not sufficiently allege a hostile work environment claim: Plaintiff has not alleged a hostile work…

Read More Hostile Work Environment Claim Not Alleged; Discrete Incident of Discrimination Relating to Denial of Tenure Not Enough
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From James v. NYC Health & Hospitals Corp. et al, 2017 WL 3923675 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 6, 2017): Defendants argue that Waiters’s alleged conduct was not sufficiently severe or pervasive as a matter of law. See Def. Br. at 12 (claiming conduct “lacks any semblance of concreteness, vulgarity or even obscenity”). That evidence, however, is sufficient…

Read More Sexual Harassment Hostile Work Environment Claim Survives Summary Judgment Against NYC Health & Hospitals Corp.
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