HR News - Title VII & DEI Lawsuits; Abortions Benefits; and Pay Transparency with Steve Peglar

08/31/23 • 41 min

In episode 111, Coffey talks with Steve Peglar about August’s HR-related news items related to Title VII, diversity, abortion, and pay transparency.

They discuss the reason they were surprised by the Fifth Circuit’s recent Title VII decision; the anti-DEI lawsuit against Starbucks and why DEI efforts are shifting to a more systematic approach; the impact of job postings that lead with abortion-related benefits; and the popularity of pay transparency laws.

Links to stuff they talked about are on our website at https://goodmorninghr.com/EP111 and include the following topics:

-Fifth Circuit Expands Title VII Exposure for Employers

-Federal Court dismisses suit that targeted Starbucks; DEI policies

-Employers that announced abortion benefits aaw more clicks on job postings

-Illinois pay transparency law mandates pay scale, benefits in job postings

Good Morning, HR is brought to you by Imperative—premium background checks with fast and friendly service. For more information about our commitment to quality and excellent customer service, visit us at https://imperativeinfo.com.

If you are an HRCI or SHRM-certified professional, this episode of Good Morning, HR has been pre-approved for three-quarters of a recertification credit. To obtain the recertification information for this episode, visit https://goodmorninghr.com.

About our Guest:

Steve Peglar is a senior HR leader with 30 years of extensive and diverse experience in HR consulting and management. For over two of those decades, Steve served as senior partner and consultant with a premier HR consulting firm in the Dallas/Ft. Worth, Texas area, working with clients in a broad range of industries, and with the remainder of his career spent in executive leadership, HR management, and internal consulting roles.

Steve currently serves as Deputy Executive Director & Head of HR/Organizational Development for the Housing Authority of Travis County, in addition to operating his own human resources consulting firm (HR Strategies of Texas, LLC).

Steve is active in the community and has worked with a variety of nonprofit service organizations, including having served on the boards of directors of Community Healthcare of Texas (Board Chair), the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, Lighthouse for the Blind of Fort Worth (Board Chair & Board of Trustees member), Susan G. Komen Foundation of Greater Fort Worth, Boy Scouts of America Longhorn Council, the YMCA, and Fort Worth HR Management Association. He is also a graduate of the 2014 Leadership Fort Worth Class. In addition, he is a member of Austin SHRM (where he has served as a professional Mentor) and the Austin Association for Talent Development.

Steve Peglar can be reached at:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevepeglar

https://www.hrstrategiestx.com

About Mike Coffey:

Mike Coffey is an entrepreneur, human resources professional, licensed private investigator, and HR consultant.

In 1999, he founded Imperative, a background investigations firm helping risk-averse companies make well-informed decisions about the people they involve in their business.

Today, Imperative serves hundreds of businesses across the US and, through its PFC Caregiver & Household Screening brand, many more private estates, family offices, and personal service agencies.

Mike has been recognized as an Entrepreneur of Excellence and has twice been named HR Professional of the Year.

Additionally, Imperative has been named the Texas Association of Business’ small business of the year and is accredited by the Professional Background Screening Association.

Mike is a member of the Fort Worth chapter of the Entrepreneurs’ Organization and volunteers with the SHRM Texas State Council.

Mike maintains his certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) through the

In episode 111, Coffey talks with Steve Peglar about August’s HR-related news items related to Title VII, diversity, abortion, and pay transparency.

Links to stuff they talked about are on our website at https://goodmorninghr.com/EP111 and include the following topics:

-Fifth Circuit Expands Title VII Exposure for Employers

-Federal Court dismisses suit that targeted Starbucks; DEI policies

-Employers that announced abortion benefits aaw more clicks on job postings

-Illinois pay transparency law mandates pay scale, benefits in job postings

About our Guest:

Steve Peglar can be reached at:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevepeglar

https://www.hrstrategiestx.com

About Mike Coffey:

Mike Coffey is an entrepreneur, human resources professional, licensed private investigator, and HR consultant.

In 1999, he founded Imperative, a background investigations firm helping risk-averse companies make well-informed decisions about the people they involve in their business.

Today, Imperative serves hundreds of businesses across the US and, through its PFC Caregiver & Household Screening brand, many more private estates, family offices, and personal service agencies.

Mike has been recognized as an Entrepreneur of Excellence and has twice been named HR Professional of the Year.

Additionally, Imperative has been named the Texas Association of Business’ small business of the year and is accredited by the Professional Background Screening Association.

Mike is a member of the Fort Worth chapter of the Entrepreneurs’ Organization and volunteers with the SHRM Texas State Council.

Mike maintains his certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) through the

Previous Episode

Practical and Legal Caregiver Issues in the Workplace with Allison Bowers

In episode 110 Coffey talks with Allison Bowers about employer’s legal responsibilities to caregivers and practical ways employers can accommodate their needs.

They discuss their own caregiver experiences; how remote work is has affected caregivers; biases and assumptions often made about caregivers; accommodations, including schedule flexibility, employers might consider to recruit and retain caregivers; the risk of selective accommodations; laws that protect caregivers such as FMLA, Title VII, and in some cases ADA; and other policies employers can have to support caregivers.

Link to the EEOC guidance referenced by Allison can be found here: https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/enforcement-guidance-unlawful-disparate-treatment-workers-caregiving-responsibilities

Good Morning, HR is brought to you by Imperative—premium background checks with fast and friendly service. For more information about our commitment to quality and excellent customer service, visit us at https://imperativeinfo.com.

If you are an HRCI or SHRM-certified professional, this episode of Good Morning, HR has been pre-approved for half a recertification credit. To obtain the recertification information for this episode, visit https://goodmorninghr.com.

About our Guest:

In the words of her peers, Allison Bowers "represents the very best of the legal profession - smart, honest, caring, and extremely capable." Born and raised in a small Texas town, Allison's approach to law reflects her grounded, practical roots. Allison is a frequent speaker on employment law topics, has been named to the Best Lawyers and Texas Super Lawyer lists, and has served as an expert witness on the legal sufficiency of an internal investigation.

After law school, Allison clerked for Lee Yeakel, now Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas in Austin. Allison practiced as a commercial litigator with Baker Botts LLP for over ten years before co-founding Hutcheson Bowers LLLP, which celebrated its 12th anniversary in 2023. Allison's sensible and sympathetic perspective make her especially sought after as an investigator and counselor on difficult employee management issues. Executives love working with Allison for these same reasons. Allison is also called on to manage litigation because she is laser-focused on getting to the best resolution for her client in the most efficient way possible.

After busy days at work, Allison enjoys the peaceful process of tending to her orchids, some of which she's had for over 10 years. Her oldest plant, a philodendron, is over 30 years old and has survived being dug up and hauled all over Austin. Her husband and teenage daughter often try to interrupt her, but she's learned to tune them out.

Allison Bowers can be reached at:
https://www.hutchesonbowers.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/allison-bowers-02052526
https://twitter.com/hutchesonbowers
https://www.facebook.com/hutchesonbowerslawfirm

About Mike Coffey:

Mike Coffey is an entrepreneur, human resources professional, licensed private investigator, and HR consultant.

In 1999, he founded Imperative, a background investigations firm helping risk-averse companies make well-informed decisions about the people they involve in their business.

Today, Imperative serves hundreds of businesses across the US and, through its PFC Caregiver & Household Screening brand, many more private estates, family offices, and personal service agencies.

Mike has been recognized as an Entrepreneur of Excellence and has twice been named HR Professional of the Year.

Additionally, Imperative has been named the Texas Association of Business’ small business of the year and is accredited by the Professional Background Screening Association.

Mike is a member of the Fort Worth chapter of the Entrepreneurs’ Organization and volunteers with the SHRM Texas State Council.

Mike maintains his certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) through the HR Certification Institute. He is also a SHRM Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP).

Mike lives in Fort Worth with his very patient wife. He practices yoga and maintains a keto diet, about both of which he will gladly tell you way more than you want to know.

Learning Objectives:

1. Explore remote work's impact on caregivers, flexible policies, and accommodation responses.

2. Understand legal responsibilities to caregivers under FMLA, Title VII, and ADA.

3. Identify effective policies for employers to support caregivers while ensuring fairness and compliance.

Next Episode

Fearless Curious Conversations in the Workplace with Monica Guzman

In episode 112, Coffey talks with Monica Guzman about how organizations can promote healthy dialogue about social and political issues.

They discuss the current perceived and actual US social and political divide impacts workplaces; employees’ changing expectations of employers; “pernicious assumptions in our politics”; certainty vs. curiosity; using curiosity as a tool to mitigate conflict; the importance of curiosity in innovation and business; creating a culture of curiosity; the importance of “ritualizing” organizational values in responding to conflict; understanding other’s workstyles and preferences; and how leaders can develop curiosity as a skill.

If you are an HRCI or SHRM-certified professional, this episode of Good Morning, HR has been pre-approved for half a recertification credit. To obtain the recertification information for this episode, visit https://goodmorninghr.com.

About our Guest:

Mónica Guzmán is a bridge builder, journalist, and author who lives for great conversations sparked by curious questions. Her new book, "I Never Thought of it That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times" was featured on the Glenn Beck Podcast and named a New York Times recommended read.

She’s Senior Fellow for Public Practice at Braver Angels, the nation’s largest cross-partisan grassroots organization working to depolarize America; founder and CEO of Reclaim Curiosity, an organization working to build a more curious world; cofounder of the award-winning Seattle newsletter The Evergrey; and advisor for Starts With Us and the Generations Over Dinner project.

She was a 2019 fellow at the Henry M. Jackson Foundation, where she studied social and political division, and a 2016 fellow at the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University, where she researched how journalists can rethink their roles to better meet the needs of a participatory public.

She was named one of the 50 most influential women in Seattle, served twice as a juror for the Pulitzer Prizes, and plays a barbarian named Shadrack in her besties’ Dungeons & Dragons campaign.

A Mexican immigrant, Latina, and dual US/Mexico citizen, she lives in Seattle with her husband and two kids and is the proud liberal daughter of conservative parents.

Monica Guzman can be reached at:

https://www.moniguzman.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/moniguzman

https://twitter.com/moniguzman

https://www.facebook.com/moniguzman

https://www.instagram.com/moniguzman/?hl=en

About Mike Coffey:

Mike Coffey is an entrepreneur, human resources professional, licensed private investigator, and HR consultant.

In 1999, he founded Imperative, a background investigations firm helping risk-averse companies make well-informed decisions about the people they involve in their business.

Today, Imperative serves hundreds of businesses across the US and, through its PFC Caregiver & Household Screening brand, many more private estates, family offices, and personal service agencies.

Mike has been recognized as an Entrepreneur of Excellence and has twice been named HR Professional of the Year.

Additionally, Imperative has been named the Texas Association of Business’ small business of the year and is accredited by the Professional Background Screening Association.

Mike is a member of the Fort Worth chapter of the Entrepreneurs’ Organization and volunteers with the SHRM Texas State Council.

Mike maintains his certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) through the HR Certification Institute. He is also a SHRM Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP).

Mike lives in Fort Worth with his very patient wife. He practices yoga and maintains a keto diet, about both of which he will gladly tell you way more than you want to know.

Learning Objectives: