| Summary: The Second Circuit certified three questions to the New York State Court of Appeals. The claim involves two convicted sex offender who were fired from their jobs after a background check revealed criminal histories. They sued their direct employer, a company which had an agency relationship with their employer, and the agency’s parent company. The District Court granted summary judgment and found the New York Human Rights Law applied only to the direct employer. The questions before the court are whether the New York Human Rights Law’s criminal conviction provisions apply only to “employers,” what is the scope or definition of the term “employer” and whether a non-employer can be liable under the NY Human Rights Law’s “aider and abettor” provision. |
| Impact(s): New York employers, employment agencies and contractors |
| Summary: A court dismissed an employee’s disability and discrimination action arising from her termination after a positive drug test. The employee exhibited erratic behavior at work and her employer ordered her to submit to a reasonable suspicion drug screen. The employee tested positive for prescription drugs for which she did not have a prescription and her employment was terminated. She subsequently sued her employer alleging claims for disability and age discrimination. Her employer filed for summary judgment and the court found that she failed to establish a case for age or disability discrimination. |
| Impact(s): Drug screening compliance – for general legal review |
