Reasonable Response to Employee's Complaints of Harassment Shields Employer from Title VII Liability: Seventh Circuit | Practical Law
In Muhammad v. Caterpillar, Inc., the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment for the employer, holding that where the employer promptly and reasonably responded to an employee's complaints of sexual and racial harassment, and effectively stopped the harassment, the employer was not liable under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII). The court also held that because sexual orientation is not a protected class under Title VII, an employee cannot maintain a retaliation claim based on a complaint of statements regarding sexual orientation.