A recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit serves as an important reminder to employers that they may have EEO obligations under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act for workers such as temporary employees provided by a third party staffing firm who are not on their own regular payrolls.
At issue in Faush v. Tuesday Morning, Inc., No. 14-1452 (3d Cir. Nov. 18, 2015), was whether a temporary employee assigned by a staffing agency for placement with one of its clients could bring a claim under Title VII against the client company
In this case, the appeals court said the answer was yes, finding that under a longstanding common law test which focuses on whether an entity has control over the manner and means of the person’s work, the plaintiff provided sufficient evidence that there was enough “control” to make him an employee of the staffing agency’s client for purposes of Title VII liability.
A copy of the Third Circuit’s decision in Faush can be found here.