Employment Attorney Elaine Turner in EHS Today - Supreme Court Bans Discrimination Against LGBT Employees

June 2020

EHS Today

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The U.S. Supreme Court has taken a major step towards ending or at the very least curtailing incidents of workplace bullying, particularly when it’s aimed at LGBT workers.

Here are some tips for employers on how to foster a more supportive and safer workplace for LGBT workers.  

This opinion will have a long term impact on employers subject to Title VII, i.e., those with 15 or more employees, observes Elaine Turner, a shareholder/partner at national law firm Hall Estill. “Regardless of contrary state laws, such employers may not discriminate against individuals in employment decisions because they are gay or transgender. Those that do, violate Title VII and are subject to legal actions against them that could be very costly.”

Turner anticipates there will be cases for the next several years addressing religious liberty issues that will be raised by some employers in defense of such Title VII claims. “Employers with less than 15 employees will continue to be governed by applicable state and local anti-discrimination laws,” she notes.