Recently, a client received an EEOC charge that among other claims, alleged that a manager’s discussions of support for former President Trump’s campaign constituted evidence of a hostile work environment based on race. Earlier this week, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals avoided addressing claims from an African-American employee that co-workers wearing “MAGA” apparel contributed to a hostile work environment based on race.
Do political discussions or gestures of support constitute evidence of racial harassment, particularly if they are accompanied with direct proof of racial animus In the most recent case Paschall v. Tube Processing Corp.The court affirmed dismissal on the grounds that the plaintiff had never reported the alleged conduct of the plaintiff to management. The court never addressed the question of whether the alleged conduct exceeded the bar for racial harassment claims.
With that said, it is hard to imagine that the EEOC or federal courts would consider a co-worker’s political leanings alone to constitute evidence of race discrimination. The more difficult questions arise when political expressions are accompanied with claims of using racial epithets and other racist behavior. Even in these cases, federal agencies and courts may not conclude that the political behavior can be used to prove race discrimination. Many employers try to keep political topics off the workplace’s agenda in order to avoid such difficult situations.
[View source.]
