Burlington Industries

Burlington Industries is a diversified American fabric maker based in Greensboro, North Carolina. Founded in 1923, the company has operations in the United States, Mexico, and India and a global manufacturing and product development network based in Hong Kong with over 8000 employees on several sites in USA, Canada & Worldwide. The company entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December 2001. Its assets were acquired by International Textile Group (ITG) out of bankruptcy in late 2003. The Lees Carpet division was sold to Mohawk Industries as part of the deal. With only 500 employees remaining, the company moved out of its headquarters building on Friendly Avenue in October 2004. ITG continues to operate the companies Burlington WorldWide Apparel and Burlington House Interior Fabrics.

ITG continues to protect with full force of law the brand name Burlington, which it owns. This has, on occasion, caused conflicts with Burlington Coat Factory, which was found in contempt of court for misusing the Burlington trademark and must disclaim in its advertising that it is not affiliated with Burlington Industries.

Burlington Industries, Inc. v. Ellerth

Burlington Industries, Inc. v. Ellerth, 524 U.S. 742 (1998), was a United States Supreme Court decision in which the Court held that employers are liable if supervisors create a hostile work environment for employees.

Kimberly Ellerth, a female employee at Burlington Industries, sued the company for sexual harassment on the part of her male supervisor. She alleged the vice president of sales made offensive remarks and unwanted overtures. She identified three episodes involving threats to deny tangible job benefits unless sexual favors were granted. She alleged a violation of title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The lower court dismissed her claim, noting that she had suffered no actual negative job consequences. The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the lower court decision, but issued 8 separate opinions.

In a 7–2 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in her favor. Justice Kennedy said the Congress has left it to the courts to determine the controlling principles. This majority ruling was summarized as follows:

Burlington

Burlington may refer to:

Places

England

Canada

United States

Human resources

Human resources is the set of individuals who make up the workforce of an organization, business sector, or economy. "Human capital" is sometimes used synonymously with human resources, although human capital typically refers to a more narrow view (i.e., the knowledge the individuals embody and economic growth). Likewise, other terms sometimes used include "manpower", "talent", "labour", or simply "people".

Definition of staffing or personnel management

Staffing is a process of hiring, positioning and overseeing employees in an organisation.

Origins

Pioneering economist John R. Commons used the term "human resource" in his 1893 book The Distribution of Wealth but did not further build upon it. The term "human resource" was subsequently in use during the 1910s and 1920s as was the notion that workers could be seen as a kind of capital asset. Among scholars the first use of "human resources" in its modern form was in a 1958 report by economist E. Wight Bakke. The term began to become more developed in the 19th century due to misunderstandings between the employers and employees.