Discrimination and Harassment

Equal Employment Opportunity Claims

Since the introduction of civil rights laws in the 1960s, Littler has counseled employers on equal employment opportunity (EEO) compliance and defended employers in discrimination, harassment and retaliation lawsuits and regulatory investigations. To this day, Littler’s exclusive focus on employment law means we have a sizable core of attorneys who focus their practice on federal and state EEO laws and the nuanced issues that arise under them. Based on an increased focus on systemic and class-type claims and litigation by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Littler also has stayed on the cutting edge in monitoring such developments and defending clients.

Attorneys in Littler’s EEO & Diversity Practice Group have significant experience in assisting employers with compliance and defense of the full spectrum of discrimination claims, including age, race, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, and national origin, along with issues involving pregnancy and disability reasonable accommodations, equal pay, harassment, and retaliation.

Additionally, many of our attorneys regularly counsel clients on legal questions involved in the formulation and implementation of Inclusion, Equity and Diversity (IE&D) initiatives, particularly when such initiatives can be perceived to involve questions of EEO law. Our experience also extends to defending clients in litigation when discrimination is alleged in connection with clients’ diversity initiatives.

Ahead of the Curve

Littler values our attorneys’ collective experiences, and the firm attracts and retains preeminent lawyers who are leaders in EEO law, and the practice of IE&D. Employment discrimination law is continually evolving. Discrimination claims based on algorithmic bias, religious discrimination, “reverse” discrimination, IE&D programming, hairstyles, employment testing, social justice efforts, vaccination status, pay equity, recreational marijuana use and other off-duty activities, and website accommodation have increased in recent years. We go to great lengths to help ensure that employers are provided focused, proactive counseling as these changes and issues arise.

Sharing knowledge within Littler is also a core value of the firm, backed up with advanced knowledge-management technology. This wealth of knowledge at Littler is easily transferred to our clients, whether it be through one-on-one communication to efficiently answer a client’s question, benchmarking updates or through timely written updates or client webinars on significant case or regulatory developments. As one example, Littler monitors EEOC developments around the country and each year, for the benefit of its clients, issues Littler’s Annual Report on EEOC Developments, which reviews, analyzes and reports on significant regulatory developments, settlements, litigation activities, trends in IE&D programming and court opinions involving the EEOC. Littler attorneys also regularly post podcasts, blogs, vlogs, contribute to external publications and are often guest speakers at national employment conferences and seminars.

Counseling and Training

A signature of Littler’s practice is our ability to help employers comply with EEO laws and take precautionary measures to deter litigation. We frequently assist employers in developing legally compliant policies, counsel employers on employment-related decisions, review employment policies, provide audit services to employers to assess and correct problematic practices proactively, and perform disparate impact analyses to ensure that employment decisions do not adversely affect a protected group.

Littler also offers cost effective, customizable, and innovative training programs for employers as part of our overall efforts to work closely with our clients to ensure they are meeting their compliance obligations and/or their inclusion and diversity objectives. 

Inclusion, Equity & Diversity Initiatives

Littler has helped numerous employers at every stage of the process, including assisting with the design and implementation of a broad range of services to fit our clients’ custom needs. These services include the design and delivery of custom educational programs, culture scans/climate assessments, counseling on affinity groups and support for the development or restructuring of diversity programs.

We have also helped companies broaden their hiring, promotional and retention practices in a legal and appropriate manner. We work very closely with our clients to keep them apprised of recent jurisdictionally relevant court decisions and legal challenges that can sometimes restrict the implementation of certain strategies towards achieving inclusion, equity, and diversity objectives.

We also have experience with defending such initiatives when they are challenged in the courts.

Pay Equity Assessment

Focus on pay inequality and its effect on women and other historically marginalized groups has intensified in recent years. On behalf of clients, Littler invested in innovative technology to help counsel employers in this space. In a privileged context, Littler’s Pay Equity Assessment™ tool can assist employers of all sizes – from organizations operating in one state to 50-state employers to organizations operating in multiple countries – with their pay equity needs. The tool combines proprietary technology and the application of data science with our deep experience in compensation and employment law. The result is an analysis that assesses litigation risk and points clients toward solutions.

Defending Employers before the EEOC and Other EEO Agencies

At Littler, our team includes lawyers who have worked for the EEOC and state equal employment agencies, former congressional staffers and leaders of the EEO Committee of the ABA Labor and Employment Section, who have worked in tandem with various chairs, commissioners and senior leadership of the EEOC. These attorneys’ prior experience provides Littler with the ability to understand an agency’s perspective during an initial investigation of an EEO charge through trial.