April 9, 2015 by

Washington State Patrol May Have Discriminatorily Fired a Black Female Cadet Despite Multiple Failed Tests

By Erica Shelley Nelson and Brennen Johnson

Discrimination1In Davis v. State of Washington, the Washington State Court of Appeals, Division I, reversed the dismissal of a gender and race discrimination claim filed by a Washington State Patrol Cadet. The former Cadet sued the State of Washington claiming that race and gender played a substantial role in the Washington State Patrol Training Academy’s decision to terminate her from the program. The trial court dismissed the lawsuit before trial after determining that the State had provided a legitimate reason for terminating the Cadet. The Court of Appeals reversed the dismissal finding that the Cadet had shown that, even if a legitimate reason existed for her termination, the decision still might have been substantially motivated by race or gender discrimination.

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Filed Under: Gender/Pregnancy Discrimination, Race Discrimination
December 29, 2014 by

Washington Supreme Court Reverses Court Of Appeals’ Ruling Granting Summary Judgment To Clark College On An Instructor’s Age Discrimination Claim Under WLAD

By Erica Shelley Nelson and Jordan L. Jones

Age DiscriminationIn Scrivener v. Clark Coll., the Washington Supreme Court reversed the Court of Appeals’ ruling granting summary judgment to Clark College on an instructor’s age discrimination claim under Washington’s Law Against Discrimination (WLAD). The Court held that the 55-year-old Plaintiff, who had applied for a tenure-track teaching position at the college, had:

[P]resented sufficient evidence to create a genuine issue of material fact either (1) that Clark College’s articulated reason [for not hiring her] was a pretext or (2) that although the reason is legitimate, age was a substantial motivating factor in Clark College’s decision not to hire . . . [the Plaintiff].

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Filed Under: Age Discrimination
December 11, 2014 by

Court Denies Boeing’s Summary Judgment Motion Against Former Employee For FMLA, WFMLA, and WLAD Claims

By Erica Shelley Nelson and Jordan L. Jones 

fmla 2In Alexander v. Boeing Co., the U.S. District Court, Western District of Washington denied defendant Boeing’s motion for summary judgment. The court found that there were genuine disputes of material fact regarding the plaintiff’s claims that Boeing violated the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Washington Family Medical Leave Act (WFMLA), and the Washington Law Against Discrimination (WLAD) when they terminated her employment.

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Filed Under: Employment Discrimination
November 3, 2014 by

Court Issues a Mixed Ruling on Kitsap County Deputy Fire Marshal’s USERRA Claims

By Jordan L. Jones

sad happyIn Hanson v. Cnty. of Kitsap, the court held that a Kitsap County Deputy Fire Marshal’s claims under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) relating to (1) reemployment, (2) benefits, (3) hostile work environment, and (4) constructive discharge should be dismissed under summary judgment. The court also held that the “[p]laintiff’s motion for summary judgment on his USERRA claim under § 4318 (pension) should be granted . . . . [T]he § 4311 USERRA claim and WLAD [i.e., Washington Law Against Discrimination] claim (to the extent they are based on the failure to promote him and his removal from the fire investigation rotation) and his USERRA claim under § 4316 (without cause discharge), is very thin, but is sufficient to allow to proceed on those claims.”

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Filed Under: Employment Discrimination
August 11, 2014 by

Religious Non-Profits Exempt from WLAD, Not a Violation of State Establishment Clause

By Kasey Burton
justice-scales-cross-cc2The Washington Supreme Court held that the religious non-profit organization exemption set forth in the Washington Law Against Discrimination’s (WLAD) definition of “employer” does not violate the state privileges and immunities clause, and does not implicate the State’s establishment clause.

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Filed Under: Disability Discrimination, Religious Rights
April 11, 2014 by

Court of Appeals Holds That When Yakima Police Officer’s Disability Manifests Itself as Insubordination, City of Yakima can Terminate

By Emily Nelson

FiredIn Brownfield v. City of Yakima, the Washington Court of Appeals, Division III, found that Yakima police officer Oscar Brownfield, fired for insubordination in 2007, failed to support his claim that he was actually fired because of a disability.  The Court held that his refusal to submit to a fitness for duty examination, not the disability that led to the examination requested was the proximate cause of the discharge.

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Filed Under: Disability Discrimination, Employment Discrimination
April 4, 2014 by

PERC Examiner Finds No Discrimination or Interference Against Monroe Corrections Sergeant

By Therese Norton

Case DismisseddIn State – Corrections, PERC Examiner Emily Whitney dismissed a discrimination and interference complaint brought by the Teamsters Local 117 against the Washington State Department of Corrections.  Decision 12002 (PSRA, 2014). The Teamsters alleged that the Department discriminated against a corrections sergeant who had previously testified in a separate PERC unfair labor practice hearing by investigating him regarding the distribution of a “sensitive” video and by denying him a promotional opportunity.  Separately, the Teamsters alleged that the Department made statements that interfered with the collective bargaining rights of a unit member and shop steward.

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Filed Under: Employment Discrimination
August 22, 2013 by

Website Helps Users Explore “Reasonable Accommodation” Options

By Therese Norton

The law requires employers to make “reasonable accommodations” for individuals with disabilities to perform their jobs.  Identifying and implementing those accommodations can be tricky sometimes as it requires an individualized assessment of the nature of the disability and the required job duties.  Union representatives may be called upon to assist in this process.

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Filed Under: Disability Discrimination, Employment Discrimination
June 10, 2013 by

Termination for Requesting or Utilizing Reasonable Accommodation Violates Washington Law Against Discrimination

By Kate Acheson

As a case of first impression, a Washington State District Court recently found, in Hansen v. Boeing Co., that an employee is protected against retaliation for requesting or utilizing reasonable accommodation for a disability under the Washington State Law Against Discrimination (WSLAD). [Read more…]

Filed Under: Disability Discrimination, Employment Discrimination
June 10, 2013 by

Religious Exemption for Discrimination Claims May Not Apply when Discrimination was Not Religiously Motivated

By David Worley

In Ockletree v. Franciscan Health Systems, 27 AD Cases 442 (W.D. Wash. 2012), a Washington federal district court refused to dismiss the plaintiff’s ADA claims against a religious hospital when the discriminatory action was not religiously motivated.  Whether the religious exemption under the Washington Law against Discrimination (WLAD) applied to non-religious based discriminatory firings by religious institutions is currently an unanswered question in Washington.  Although there was no actual record that the claims had been timely filed, the SOL may have been longer if the WLAD did apply to this claim, so dismissal for untimely firing could not be decided at this point.  The court dismissed the plaintiff’s discharge in violation of public policy claim, holding that the statutory remedies were sufficient and therefore precluded a common-law claim. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Disability Discrimination, Employment Discrimination, Race Discrimination
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