Supreme Court Hears Case Asking: Who’s A Boss?

The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments Monday in a case that asks the justices to define who is a “supervisor” when the issue is harassment in the workplace. The definition is important because employers are automatically liable for damages in most cases in which a supervisor harasses a subordinate.

At the center of the case were allegations of racial harassment brought by Maetta Vance, a kitchen assistant at Ball State University in Muncie, Ind. For many of her 18 years at Ball State, Vance was the only African-American in the catering department, but it wasn’t until her 16th year working there that she filed racial harassment charges.

The federal appeals court for the 7th Circuit, in the Midwest, threw the case out because the alleged harasser did not have the power to hire, fire or discipline anyone. The 7th Circuit’s definition of a supervisor is narrower than that used by some other appeals courts and by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the federal agency charged with enforcing employment discrimination laws. So, after losing in the 7th Circuit, Vance appealed her case to the Supreme Court.