As most, and one would hope all, Wisconsin employers know, applicants and employees in Wisconsin are afforded certain protections against discrimination based on arrest and conviction records.
Earlier this year, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals considered whether the term "arrest" included the issuance of a civil, municipal citation. It found that it did not.
The case, Oconomowoc Area Sch. Dist. v. Cota, 2024 WI App 8, 410 Wis. 2d 619, 3 N.W.3d 736, involves two school district maintenance workers, brothers Gregory and Jeffrey Cota, who were both discharged for allegedly pocketing some of the cash proceeds they received when delivering and selling scrap metal from the school district to a recycling center.
Following another employee's report that he and the Cotas had pocketed some of the scrap metal proceeds following the delivery of scrap metal from a school in the district that had closed, the school district investigated. It determined that over a nearly two-year period, the recycling center had paid a total of $10,613.16 for scrap metal, but only $4,929.35 had been turned over to the district. When interviewed during the investigation, Greogry Cota turned in a bag containing more than $400 in...
