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Volume 7, Issue 2
February 2018
The Evolving Question of Sexual Harassment

The news surrounding Weinstein, Lauer, Rose, Franken, Conyers, and others has pushed sexual harassment to the forefront in recent months. Many mid and upper level managers are spending time reviewing their e-mail, text, and social media history and holding their breath while hoping not to be accused by an offended subordinate. Most offhanded or inappropriate remarks will never be an issue - but then some may.

Today is a good time to reexamine your personnel interaction policies, to take a closer look at what reporting mechanisms are established, and to consider supervisor and employee sexual harassment training. Continue reading the article by Murphy J. Foster, III and Sunny Mayhall West. 
Shredded Notes Do Not Excuse DOL From Bias Suit
The United States District Court for the District of Columbia said that the Department of Labor destroyed notes that could have supported a race and sex discrimination case brought by Kenneth Elliott. The DOL said it destroyed the notes two years after denying Elliot a promotion and giving it to another employee, but the court says the department should have retained the notes because they were aware that Elliott had brought the charge. While Elliott did not claim that the destroyed records violated any laws or regulations, the action was out of line with government guidance to "retain all employment records" relating to potential EEOC or Title VII claims. According to the lawsuit, Elliott was interviewed for a promotion from GS-13 to GS-14 several times and was unlawfully denied each time. The DOL official who interviewed Elliott shredded her notes upon her retirement from the agency. The court said that a reasonable jury could find that the shredded notes may have provided support to the race and sex bias allegations.
Tackling Immigration After Government Shutdown
After three days of government shutdown, Senators and Representatives came to a temporary agreement to fund the government until February 8 to give them more time to come to a final funding decision. The hot-topic hold up was immigration. The Democratic minority in the Senate wanted to hold out for negotiations to incorporate an extension of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) immigration policy, which ultimately led to the shut down. With the new deadline looming, Senators have come together to work out a bipartisan solution that will fund the government through 2018. Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) has spearheaded the efforts to create a "common-sense coalition" that helped end the shutdown, and is now working to find a solution to the DACA issue. President Donald Trump has suggested deportation protection and a citizenship pathway for as many as 1.8 million DACA recipients who came to America as children and are known as Dreamers. In return, he is asking for $25 million to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. So far, no deal has been reached that will extend the temporary funding. 
Nassar Scandal Has Far-Reaching Consequences
Former United States Olympic Team Doctor, USA Gymnastics (USAG) Doctor and Michigan State University (MSU) Doctor Larry Nassar was sentenced on Wednesday, January 24 to 40 to 175 years in prison for sexually abusing over 150 women and girls over 20 years after agreeing to plead guilty in a deal with the Michigan Attorney General. However, Nassar's sentence will have consequences that reach far beyond his own actions. Already, the entire USA Gymnastics Board resigned after an ultimatum from the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC), the Michigan State University President and Athletic Director have resigned, and three investigations have been ordered: one requested by MSU for the Michigan Attorney General to investigate the university's response to the abuse, one by the NCAA into MSU's handling of the accusations received by girls for years, and another by the State of Texas into the Karolyi Ranch in Huntsville, Texas where USA Gymnastics hosts all National Team training sessions. Nassar's sentencing was preceded by seven days of victim testimony as part of the plea deal. In several of their statements, victims called for independent investigations into MSU, USAG and the USOC to find out just how much was known about Nassar's actions and why nothing was done to stop him. Along with the investigations, USAG reversed its training contract with the Karolyi Ranch where many athletes claimed Nassar had unfettered access to abuse them with no oversight. There have also been civil suits filed by alleged victims aimed at MSU and USAG claiming the institutions had enabled Nassar's abuse and attempted to silence those who came forward. MSU and the USAG reportedly filed motions to dismiss the cases, citing the cases were past the statute of limitations. With the sentencing over and the multitude of investigations now beginning, it is almost certain there will be more resignations and potentially criminal charges brought against the institutions. 
Streaming Services to Give Songwriters Bigger Cut

The Copyright Royalty Board ruled that songwriters will be getting a raise in revenue streaming shares. The current amount songwriters get from streaming services is 10.5 percent. The Board's ruling will raise that amount to 15.1 percent share over the next five years. According to a statement from the National Music Publisher's Association, the 4.6 percent raise in revenue is the largest rate increase in CRB history. Since the rise of streaming services like Spotify and YouTube, songwriters have been fighting for higher compensation. The decision, made after a trial where music publishers and songwriters sued Alphabet, Inc., which owns YouTube and Google, Amazon.com Inc., Apple Inc., Spotify Technology, and Pandora Media Inc. was viewed as a victory despite the songwriters pushing to get paid every time a song is streamed.
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