Employers Risk Liability if Customers Discriminate in Workplaces

Employers may lean toward taking a hands-off approach when customers or other third parties exhibit discriminatory behavior in a workplace, but the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission takes a dim view of laissez-faire attitudes and will sue.

Case in point: A recent lawsuit the EEOC filed against a Vermont nursing home that it said allowed mostly White patients to subject Black nurses to racial harassment. The agency said the long-term care facility in Burlington, Vt., had allowed the patients to use racial slurs, among other harassing behavior.

“I do think there is an obligation to have policies in place for ...