Case Analysis
Opening Scenarios
SCENARIO 1
Dalia worked on a contract basis as an auto mechanic for the clients of an auto repair shop.
Whenever there was too much work for the employees of the shop, Dalia would receive a call
and be assigned by the shop to do specific repairs on a particular vehicle.
Dalia’s specialty was rebuilding engines, and the firm would often contact her to handle complex
breakdowns for which they did not have sufficient time, since she worked much faster than the
other four mechanics it had on staff. When the job was completed, she was paid a commission
for her work based on the amount charged to that client by the auto shop.
This commission was established in advance in the contract Dalia was offered when she accepted the position. During the time she was working, Dalia was paid weekly, was free to use the shop’s garage, and also could use whatever equipment and supplies were necessary to complete the job.
In order to ensure a consistent quality among all of its workers as well as to be sure that it complied with all regulations that might govern the job, the firm’s head mechanic would check the car before the client was called to pick up the vehicle. This process ensured that clients saw all of the shop’s workers and contractors as equivalent quality.
Dalia is laid off in the middle of a job, and she files for unemployment compensation. The shop
defends the claim, arguing that she was not an employee. Was Dalia an employee or an
independent contractor?
SCENARIO 2
Soraya worked as an administrative assistant for Illusionary Industry Inc. (III), and Raphael was
her supervisor. Whenever Raphael and Soraya were alone in the office, Raphael engaged in
physical contact toward Soraya that she made clear that she did not want.
When he tried to kiss her or touch her, she would tell him to stop, move away from him, and even push him away at times. He continued to make sexual advances and lewd suggestive comments, all of which rose to the level of sexual harassment. Raphael even followed Soraya home one day and watched her house for over an hour from across the street. When she finally opened the door and confronted
him, Raphael claimed that he had been merely on his way to a nearby market despite the fact that
he lived on the other side of town near other markets.
After Soraya rejected Raphael’s advances, he retaliated by writing her a poor performance
review and then denied her a promotion. Soraya complained to III’s Human Resources
department, initially asking the department to keep her complaint confidential. However, she
later informed the department that she could no longer work with Raphael.
III investigated her complaint and subsequently suspended Raphael for one month with pay. Soraya appreciates III’s action but remains frustrated that Raphael is simply suspended and finds that she really has no remedy against Raphael through III. She files a complaint against him with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Will the EEOC case be successful? Why or why not?
SCENARIO 3
For two years, Mya worked for a tire supply company as an outside sales representative. Of the
firm’s 4,000 clients across several states in the southern United States, Mya was responsible for
100 clients, spread throughout western Texas.
She visited these customers on a regular basis and maintained very close relationships with them. She was the only connection that most of these customers had with the firm, and these clients might not even have known how else to reach the firm except through Mya.
When Mya joined the firm, she signed a non–compete agreement that stipulated that, if she were
to stop her relationship with the company, she would not engage in any business of any kind with
any customer of the firm for a period of two years.
Because of her success in building client relationships, Mya is courted by a competing firm that
does business all over the United States. She accepts an offer and begins to contact both her
original customers and other customers of her previous employer to encourage them to change
tire companies. Mya’s previous employer files a cause of action for breach of the non–compete.
What are her strongest arguments in her def