Within the last year, the Second and Seventh Circuit have reached the opposite conclusion and found that Title VII does protect against sexual orientation discrimination. Zarda v. Altitude Express, Inc., 883 F.3d 100 (2d Cir. 2018) (en banc); Hively v. Ivy Tech Cmty. Coll. of Ind., 853 F.3d 339 (7th Cir. 2017) (en banc).

Unless and until the Supreme Court decides the issue, sexual orientation discrimination is not illegal in Georgia (or Alabama or Florida). Efforts to amend Title VII in Congress to give sexual orientation protected status have failed for years.

This does not necessarily mean that you have no protection from discrimination in the workplace if you are LGBT. Some local entities such as the City of Atlanta prohibit sexual orientation discrimination.

In addition, you cannot be harassed because of your gender. If your supervisor or co-workers harass you because you are the same-sex as them, then this can be challenged under Title VII regardless if the harasser was motivated by sexual attraction.

Most importantly, you cannot be discriminated against because you don’t conform to gender stereotypes. The Eleventh Circuit has held that discrimination against a transgender individual because of gender-nonconformity was sex stereotyping that violates the Equal Protection Clause. Glenn v. Brumby, 663 F.3d 1312 (11th Cir. 2011). That precedent would probably be applied to Title VII cases and could be stretched to cover gay, lesbian, or bisexual employees if they could prove that they were discriminated against because they were expected to act a certain way in the workplace because of their gender. But for the time being, they cannot bring a discrimination claim based solely on discrimination based on their sexual identity or preferences. If that sounds like semantics, its because it is the logic the Eleventh Circuit has used here. Remarkably, LGBT couples could get married on a Saturday and be fired on a Monday at work once their employer knew they were married. Thus, marriage equality ironically makes employment discrimination against LGBT workers easier because they might announce their wedding or use their marital status to request spousal benefits. Hopefully, the Supreme Court will clarify this issue soon.

If you are an LGBT individual who believes that you have been discriminated against or harassed because of sexual stereotyping or your sexual orientation, then contact Rob to determined whether you have a case under your circumstances.

The post Can I bring a federal claim against my employer because I was discriminated against based on my sexual orientation? appeared first on Rob Reid Attorney.

Your employer may also specify the particular hours that you can be absent to vote. So if your shift normally ends at 5:00 p.m. and your employer says you can leave work at 3:00 p.m. to vote, you must use that window to vote. In those circumstances, you cannot take off two hours in the morning to vote.

If your employer takes any adverse employment action against you because you took time off to vote, then you should consult a Georgia employment lawyer like Rob to protect your voting rights.

The post Does my Georgia employer have to allow me time off to vote? appeared first on Rob Reid Attorney.

Georgia’s statute, O.C.G.A. § 34-1-3 states, “it shall be unlawful for any employer … to discharge, discipline, or otherwise penalize an employee because the employee is absent from his or her employment for the purpose of attending a judicial proceeding in response to a subpoena, summons for jury duty, or other court order or process ….”

The law even prohibits an employer from threatening to take such action:  “It shall be unlawful for any employer or the agent of such employer to threaten to take or communicate an intention of taking any action declared to be unlawful by this subsection.”

So, what can you do if you’ve been threatened or terminated for participating in jury duty?  The law allows courts (and juries) to award damages:  “Any employer or agent of such employer who violates … this Code section shall be liable to the injured employee for all actual damages thereby suffered by the employee and for reasonable attorney’s fees incurred by the employee in asserting a successful claim under this Code section.”

But there is one big exception to this prohibition.  If an employee is charged with a crime and must attend court to answer for the charges, they are not protected under the statute. In other words, if you are absent from work because you have to go to court on your own criminal charge, you can be lawfully terminated.

In addition, if your employer has a policy requiring notice, then the statute does not prohibit your employer from taking an action against you for not giving timely notice. To protect yourself, you should give notice to your employer of your jury summons or subpoena as soon as you receive it.

If you believe that you have been discriminated against, disciplined, or terminated because you responded to a subpoena for a deposition or trial, or a summons to appear for jury duty, you should consult with a Georgia Employment Attorney like Rob to enforce your rights.

The post Can I be Fired for Serving on Jury Duty? appeared first on Rob Reid Attorney.