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In Muldrow v. St. Louis, 2020 WL 5505113, a female police sergeant got transferred out of the intelligence unit and replaced by a male officer. Sergeant Muldrow had received many nonmonetary benefits in her position, including: FBI credentials; use of an unmarked take-home vehicle; ability to pursue multi-jurisdictional investigations; and visibility with high-ranking police and government officials. While her pay and title remained the same, these nonmonetary benefits were revoked upon her transfer, prompting Muldrow then to file a discrimination claim under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Act protects employees and job applicants from discrimination in employment decisions, including an employer’s decision to transfer an employee into another position involuntarily.
The Muldrow decision resolved a circuit split over whether an employee challenging a job transfer under Title VII must prove that the discriminatory employment action had caused “material harm”. Several U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals historically had required Title VII plaintiffs to show “serious,” “significant,” or “material” harm related to the terms, conditions, or privileges of employment to bring a claim. In the lower courts in Muldrow, the District Court and Eighth Circuit used the “materially adverse” threshold of harm to find Muldrow’s claims unpersuasive, citing her failure to show a “materially significant disadvantage.” On appeal, however, a unanimous Supreme Court disagreed with the lower courts, holding a claimant must only show some harm associated with an identifiable term or condition of employment to warrant having the case assessed under Title VII.
The defendant in the case, the City of St. Louis, warned that this lower threshold of harm would open a flood of additional Title VII claims if only minimal harm was sufficient to move forward in determining whether discrimination was the cause of that alleged harm, but the Court rejected that concern. Employers should consult internal and external employment legal professionals about job transfer policies and recordkeeping. If you have questions about or are interested in obtaining employment practices liability coverage, please contact your Aon broker.
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