Using the IIED Tort to Address Discrimination and Retaliation in the Workplace
2022 University of Illinois Law Review 1325
University of Tennessee Legal Studies Research Paper No. 412
43 Pages Posted: 13 Apr 2021 Last revised: 7 Sep 2022
Date Written: March 26, 2021
Abstract
Citing the need to preserve managerial discretion, courts frequently espouse the need to adopt an “especially strict approach” in cases of intentional infliction of emotional distress (IIED) in the workplace. As a result, the IIED tort currently has a limited role to play in the fight against workplace discrimination and harassment. At the same time, a few courts – almost undetected in the literature on the subject - have recognized that one form of employer conduct may merit special treatment when assessing an IIED claim against an employer. According to these courts, the fact that an employer has engaged in retaliatory conduct may be “a critical and prominent” factor in assessing an employer’s behavior, particularly where it is in response to complaints of underlying discriminatory conduct. Drawing upon social science research into the phenomenon of retaliation, the Article argues that courts should recognize retaliatory conduct as an especially weighty factor in deciding whether conduct is extreme and outrageous for purposes of IIED claims, particularly where it is coupled with discriminatory conduct.
Keywords: Discrimination, Retaliation, IIED, Outrage, Employment
JEL Classification: K10, K13, K19
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation