New law makes it easier for employees to sue.
Minnesota small business owners fear a new law designating workers with children under age 18 as a protected class will open the floodgates of lawsuits against them.
“It’s almost laughable,” says attorney Doug Seaton of Seaton, Peters and Revnew in Minneapolis. “It puts virtually everyone in the position of a protective class and gives allegiance to an excuse of why they aren’t at work or why they didn’t show up for this or that, why they didn’t follow policy or procedures.”
The law, which took effect in May 2014, bans discrimination against parents in hiring, promotion, retention and other employment decisions.
NFIB/Minnesota State Director Mike Hickey said simply responding to a complaint can cost $5,000 to $25,000, and if the case proceeds to a full trial in a district court, it could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Seaton, who handles employment and labor-related cases, knows such lawsuits can put small business owners out of business.
“The claims can be brought by anyone that meets the basis for a protective class status,” Seaton says. “So, if someone is Native American, they can file a charge claiming that whatever happened to them is because of their Native American status.”
In addition, Seaton says, the new law discourages employers from hiring.
He finds his clients saying: “Why should I bother hiring anyone? It’s just more trouble than it’s worth. I’ll just do it myself or hire family members to do it, so I’ll at least have the protection of family status myself.”
Seaton suggests changes to avoid crippling small businesses owners.
“I think there should be filing fees or the ability to dismiss a charge when it’s early—when it really doesn’t have any grounds,” he says.
Hickey, who led the opposition to the law, is working on a bill to exempt small businesses from employment discrimination lawsuits under the Human Rights Act.
