Many companies, at one time or another, will be sued for discrimination or harassment. When this occurs, it is not uncommon for the lawsuit to be brought by a current employee who continues to work for the company. This creates an uncomfortable situation—and poses a significant risk that the employee will perceive any subsequent negative actions by the company as retaliatory in nature, and will then add an additional claim of retaliation.

It is a bizarre experience to direct the assignments of the employee one day, only to sit across the table from him or her in a deposition the next. Nonetheless, a company’s priority should be to ensure that its subsequent actions after its receipt of the lawsuit do not transform a meritless case of discrimination into a convincing case of retaliation. How should an employer navigate the treacherous waters of supervising the employee all the while vigorously defending the litigation?

The answer is both simple and yet complex: proceed with extreme caution.

The Law of Retaliation

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act forbids employment discrimination against “any individual” based on “race, color, religion, sex or national origin.” A separate section of the same act (as well as numerous other employment discrimination laws) also forbids employers from “discriminating against” employees, job applicants and former employees because they “opposed” a practice that Title VII makes illegal or “made a charge, testified, assisted or participated in” a Title VII “investigation, proceeding or hearing.”

To establish a case of unlawful retaliation, the employee must prove that he or she has engaged in protected activity, the employer took a tangible adverse action against him or her, and a causal connection exists between the protected activity and the adverse employment action.

Read more: www.corpcounsel.com/id=1202666703184/Dealing-With-Employees-Who-Are-Suing-Your-Company#ixzz3AgjQ0OM8

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