Employment Practices Liability - Be Aware Of Your Exposure

Due to the ever changing work force population, i.e. increased immigration coupled with an aging population, a small business owner's Employment Practices Liability (EPL) loss exposure has significantly increased in the past few years. When you combine this with the ever expanding legislation related to this area, which has increased EPL related discrimination claims exponentially, the small business owner faces a daunting task to minimize their exposure. For example, an employer may be responsible for a supervisor's sexual harassment of another employee, even if the employer was not even aware of it in the first place. The major types of EPL lawsuits are categorized as - Discrimination, Wrongful termination, Sexual harassment and Retaliation lawsuits. These aren't mutually exclusive either. An employee can allege that a particular situation involves more than one employment related offense. As I discussed earlier, due to increased legislation in this area, the preceding categories are just the tip of the iceberg. It's important that the small business owner realize that the standard Commercial General Liability (CGL) policy does not contemplate coverage for this area. The good news is that there is specific coverage out there for EPL exposures. It is a good idea to further explore your coverage options with your insurance professional.

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