3rd Circuit Allows Suit by Gay Man Claiming Bias Due to Mannerisms
A federal appeals court has ruled that a gay man who claims his effeminate mannerisms led to workplace discrimination may sue under Title VII.
The Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Brian Prowel may pursue a Title VII claim alleging discrimination stemming from failure to conform to gender stereotypes, a form of sex discrimination, the Legal Intelligencer reports.
The U.S. Supreme Court has held that Title VII bars discrimination based on gender stereotyping, although the federal law does not cover discrimination based on sexual orientation, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and the and the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. A federal judge had dismissed Prowel’s claims in September 2007, ruling that his suit was simply “an artfully pleaded claim of sexual orientation discrimination.”
Prowel claims his layoff was motivated by his complaints about gender harassment from other workers. Prowel says he was harassed because he talked in a high voice, walked effeminately, was very well-groomed, liked to talk about art and interior design, and pushed the buttons on a work machine “with pizzazz.”
