Institutions of Higher Education Can No Longer Establish or Maintain DEI Offices

Texas is one of several states that have implemented laws aimed at eliminating DEI offices and initiatives for publicly funded institutions.

Effective January 1, 2024, Texan institutions of higher education (e.g., the University of Texas) are no longer permitted to establish or maintain diversity, equity, and inclusion (“DEI”) offices or hire/assign employees (or officers or contractors) to perform any DEI-like job duties. Further, Texas institutions may not require applicants or employees to provide DEI statements or give preference to any applicants or employees on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin. And finally, the law requires these institutions to “adopt policies and procedures for appropriately disciplining, including by termination, an employee or contractor” who violates the law.Continue Reading 2025 Texas Labor and Employment Legal Updates

As we reported in June, the Texas Labor Code was amended effective September 1 to expand liability for employers as to employee claims of sexual harassment. Specifically, the amendments to the Labor Code:

  • Impose liability for sexual harassment claims on more employers, by expanding the protections of the Labor Code to employers with as few as one (1) employee;
  • Open the door for potential individual liability by owners, supervisors, and managers for claims of sexual harassment;
  • Require an employer to take “immediate” and appropriate corrective action in response to a claim of sexual harassment, potentially accelerating an employer’s need under federal law to take “prompt” remedial action; and
  • Increase the Charge-filing period for those claiming sexual harassment from 180 days to 300 days.

Continue Reading Reminder to Texas Employers: Update Your Harassment Policies and Training

As most Texas employers are aware, prohibitions on discrimination (which includes harassment) and retaliation are imposed by the Texas Labor Code only on those employers with 15 or more employees. These prohibitions mirror, for the most part, similar prohibitions imposed by various federal laws. As the Texas legislative session drew to a close, however, two significant but curious amendments to the Labor Code were passed and subsequently signed into law by Governor Abbott, which amendments go into effect on September 1, 2021.
Continue Reading Texas Law Expands Liability for Sexual Harassment