Employment Law

Question 1:

Sid Frost worked as a merchandising supervisor for Global-Mart, Inc. a large discount store employing over 26,000 people. When Frost suffered his third stroke in April 1999, he took leave from work, which was covered by the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) of 1993. The vice president of personnel for Global-Mart approved the leave. Mike Allen, who had been hired only two months after Frost in 1984, temporarily filled Frost's position. When Frost returned to work, he discovered that Allen had been promoted to senior supervisor and given a $7,000 raise. The senior supervisor position is filled from the supervisor classification based on seniority. Global-Mart refused to allow Frost to return to his position as a supervisor and demoted him to a senior salesman position that required travel away from home on a weekly basis. Six weeks later Global-Mart fired Frost because he was unable to keep up the schedule required by his position and because his expense account was not timely filed by the end of the month.

Frost sues Global-Mart for violation of the FMLA based upon Global-Mart's failure to promote him to senior supervisor or return him to his prior position. Did Global-Mart violate the FMLA? Explain your reasoning. Support your reasoning with appropriate citations (in APA format and specific page references) to the Cheeseman textbook and no other sources.

Question 2:

Carol Jones was employed with Richmond Components, Inc. (RCI), an electrical engineering and manufacturing company that supplied parts and guidance system development for the United States Air Force. Jones was a public relations and communications manager for RCI at their facility located on Davis Air Force Base for over nine years. Of the 135 employees at the RCI facility at Davis AFB, only nine women were in professional positions. Employees in the office where Jones worked used e-mail as the primary form of communication between them. Jones was sent sexually explicit material via e-mail, including pictures that had been downloaded from the internet. Two male engineers in her work area used semi-nude swimsuit pictures as the screensaver on their computers. Pornographic pictures were cut out and put in her mailbox with notes, such as, "Will you pose like this for us?" When Jones requested that information for press releases be given to her by a stated deadline, she was subjected to sexually demeaning comments about her anatomy. When Jones complained to the vice president in charge of personnel, she was told that she worked in a high-stress "boys' club" and she had better learn to accept the "give and take" environment at RCI.

Jones quit her job and filed an action under Title VII. Will she prevail? Explain your reasoning. Support your reasoning with appropriate citations (in APA format and specific page references) to the Cheeseman textbook and no other sources.