According to the latest study from Jury Verdict Research, employment verdicts continue to be on the rise.

The median award for all types of employment claims rose a whopping 60% in the past year, from $204,000 to $326,640. Discrimination verdicts rose 16%, from $208,000 to $241,119.

Some other fascinating facts . . .

What are an employer's chances of winning at trial?

Employers won only 39% of discrimination lawsuits in the past year, tied for the worst win rate in the past decade. The lowest win rate (33%) was in age discrimination cases and the highest (52%) was in disability discrimination cases.

What are the most common discrimination claims?

Sex was #1 (35%), followed by race (26%), disability (16%), age (13%) and "other" (includes pregnancy, religion, national origin and sexual orientation) (10%).

What forms of discrimination generate the biggest verdicts?

Age discrimination was #1, followed by disability, sex and race.

What employers took the biggest hit?

Manufacturing/industrial had the biggest verdicts, followed by government, service/retail and then transportation.

Are employers better off in federal or state court?

Employers are better off in federal court, where they won 43% of the cases, versus only 37% in state court. In addition, the median federal award was 39% lower than the median state award ($164,925 versus $270,000).

What about settlements?

The median settlement amount was the highest in the past decade at $90,000 -- a 20% jump over the previous year.

Where can I get more?

For the full report - required reading for all HR professionals, business owners and employment lawyers - click here.

Article by Mark Toth, Chief Legal Officer of Manpower's North American operations, and courtesy of Manpower Employment Blawg. Mark also serve as Chief Compliance Officer and Vice President of Franchise Relations and serve on our Global Leadership Team, North American Lead Team, Executive Diversity Steering Committee and Sarbanes-Oxley Steering Committee.