The Employer’s Legal Advisor

The Case of the Jerk of a Manager

One case that I tried does not involve an employee’s excuse but demonstrates the value of having the employee’s relevant statements in writing. The employee, Ken, was a supervisor who had been demoted. Ken claimed that the manager, Vincent, acted out of racial animosity. As proof, Ken cited numerous complaints, but they did nothing to prove racial discrimination because Vincent was a real jerk of a manager and abused all subordinate employees and supervisors equally. (Indeed, one Caucasian supervisor even suffered a nervous breakdown at Vincent’s hands.)

However, Ken had an ace in the hole: his claim that Vincent had directed a racial epithet at him on one occasion. This would have meant that there would likely ...