Minor workplace changes aren't enough to justify lawsuit alleging bias or retaliation.

Courts don't want to micromanage your business. Judges understand that employers must often make workplace changes that may displease some employees.

Those changes have to be fairly substantial before a worker can successfully argue that the changes are discriminatory or intended to punish the worker for protected activity such as taking FMLA leave or reporting alleged discrimination.

Lesson: Make sure you can explain workplace changes in the context of legitimate business needs.

Recent case: Eric, a math teacher, committed suicide. He had suffered from various medical ailments over the years and took protected medical leave from time to time in order to have back surgery and a hip replacement.

But his performance had also...