Legal

American Apparel, a clothing manufacturer employing thousands of workers at its production facility in Los Angeles and at retail stores around the country, will pay $60,000 and furnish other relief to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.

Listed at the very top of the Top 10 Lobbying Victories of 2011 from The Hill newspaper is the National Retail Federation’s campaign to block last-minute efforts by the banking industry to delay debit card swipe fee reforms. While swipe fee reform was a crucial win for retailers, NRF’s legislative victories spanned a wide scope of issues.

Undercover officers in New York City attempted to sell iPhones and iPads at discounted prices (between $50 and $200) to over 600 stores throughout all five boroughs — including bodegas, supermarkets, gadget stores, etc. — clearly stating that all the hardware had been stolen.

Bloomberg reporters went to Burkina Faso, Africa where Victoria's Secret usually buys fair trade and organic-certified cotton crop to make the lingerie it sells. Reporters there found 13-year-old children laboring in the fields in pain from being beaten with switches by their bosses, the cotton farmers.

A print featuring a modern interpretation of a heart is among a number of prints at the center of court proceedings brought by Ikea. The company has alleged breach of its trademarks in various prints and "passing off" in its action against Homestore More.

The U.S. Postal Service will delay the closing or consolidation of additional post office or mail processing facilities until May 15, 2012. The USPS said that it made the decision in response to a request made by multiple U.S. Senators.

Wal-Mart is investigating potential corruption in its overseas practices, the company said. In a quarterly report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Wal-Mart said it began an internal investigation “into whether certain matters, including permitting, licensing and inspections, were in compliance with the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act,” and that it had already taken unspecified remedial measures in relation to the investigation. The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act prohibits bribery and enforces accounting standards for U.S. companies doing international business.

Illinois House leaders have agreed to pass tax breaks in order to keep Sears Holdings Corp. from abandoning its Hoffman Estates, Ill., headquarters in search of a new out-of-state home, according to Reuters. The House had previously shot down the tax package. "We have come to an agreement on a jobs package that will give some relief to a broad base of businesses in our state," said House Minority Leader Tom Cross (R).

Last week, a Macy's employee spotted a transgender woman going into the women's dressing room and decided to stop her and inform her that she wasn't really a woman. Macy's promptly fired the employee, but now she's has enlisted the help of a hatemongering conservative organization and is claiming that Macy's discriminated against her religious beliefs by denying her the right to harass whichever customer she chooses.

If you were shopping at the Miami Beach Whole Foods on Nov. 1, 2009, you might have been subjected to the powerful stench of a raw sewage leak. Management tried to ignore the problem and covered the smell with air freshener, but an unnamed employee dubbed "Janet" informed corporate management of the poop leak cover-up. She ended up getting fired. Now, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration is suing the chain for firing the employee.