Court rejects joint employer defense in discrimination case

A federal district court in Louisiana recently heard a case in which a governmental entity tried to assert that it wasn’t liable as a joint employer of the individual who had accused it of discrimination and retaliation. Read on to learn why the court sided with the employee and allowed the claims to proceed to trial.

Police sergeant claims sex discrimination and retaliation

Shandrell Privott began working for the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) in 2002. In December 2019, the department assigned her to work as Transit Police Unit Commander for the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority (RTA). This assignment lasted until March 17, 2022, when the RTA asked the NOPD to terminate her assignment and replace her with someone else.

Privott filed a lawsuit against the RTA and the city of New Orleans in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, asserting claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Louisiana state law for discrimination and retaliation. She alleged that during her assignment at the RTA, she was sexually harassed by her supervisor for months. She claimed that once she complained about the harassment, the RTA retaliated against her based on her sex by asking the NOPD to terminate her assignment.

Privott’s employment status with the RTA