A Review of the Supreme Court's 2008 - 2009 Term

Labor and employment-related cases figured prominently in the United States Supreme Court’s 2008-2009 term.  The Court’s conservative Justices continued to play a dominant role, with Justice Kennedy often casting the deciding vote.  This trend will likely continue at least through the next term, despite the recent appointment of Justice Sonia Sotomayor to replace retiring Justice David Souter.

During the 2008-2009 term, the Court took the following action:

• Considered whether an employer’s well-intentioned decision to disregard promotional test results and avoid claims of disparate impact discrimination violated Title VII;
• Held that “mixed motive” jury instructions applicable to cases arising under Title VII may not be given in discrimination cases pursued under the ADEA;
• Found that a pension plan qualified as a bona fide seniority system and did not violate the Pregnancy Discrimination Act by giving less credit for maternity leave taken before that law took effect than for other medical leave in calculating pension benefits;
• Determined that Title VII prohibits retaliation against employees who participate in an employer’s harassment investigation;
• Held that a collective bargaining agreement can waive employee rights under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA);
• Found that a local union’s charge of litigation fees to nonmember employees was constitutional;
• Addressed the constitutionality of a state law that prohibited the use of union dues deducted from public employees’ paychecks for political purposes; and
• Adhered to the “plan documents” rule under ERISA requiring that plan administrators follow the express language of plan documents in all but a very few narrowly defined circumstances.   

The following review summarizes these decisions and analyzes their likely impact on employers.

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