ACCT324 ch.43

same sex marriage

-12 states plus the district of columbia issue licenses for this -35 states ban this -2 states neither ban nor legalize this

EEOC conciliation attempts

-EEOC notifies the employer of the charge within 10 days -EEOC investigates the matter to determine whether there is "reasonable cause" to believe that a violation has occurred -if EEOC does find reasonable cause, it attempts to eliminate the discriminatory practice through conciliation -if unsuccessful, EEOC may file a lawsuit against the alleged discriminator in federal court on behalf of the employee -if EEOC decides not to sue, it notifies the plaintiff of their right to file an action and issues a "right to sue" letter to the employee

defenses under EPA

-a bona fide seniority system -a bona fide merit system -a pay system on quality or quantity of output -factors other than sex

at will employment

-an employer could fire a worker for no reason at all - this concept applied in all states with NO exception until 1959 -today any employee who is NOT employed under a contract or a collective bargaining agreement is considered to be this

protected class

-race -religion -sex (gender) -national origin -color

defense of marriage act (DOMA)

-signed by president bill clinton in 1996 -prevented same-sex couples whose marriages were recognized by their home state from receiving the hundreds of benefits available to other married couples under federal law

30

____ states plus the the district of columbia protect a smoker's right to smoke outside the workplace

damages

______ under title VII include: -up to 2 years of backpay -compensatory damages -punitive damages (limited in some cases) -attorney fees -court costs -court orders (including reinstatement) -remedial seniority

disabled

a _____ individual, for purposes of ADA, is defined as a person who meets one of the following criteria: -has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of such individual -has a record of such impairment -is regarded as having such an impairment

NOT

a plaintiff who was _____ hired for a job bc of a title VII violation may also receive remedial seniority dating back to the time when the plaintiff was discriminated against; compensatory damages, including those for pain and suffering; and in some cases punitive damages

construct validity

a psychological trait needed to perform the job is measured

remedies for ADA violations

a successful plaintiff may recover: -reinstatement -back pay -injunctive relief in cases of intentional discrimination, also: -limited compensatory -punitive damages

charge

a sworn statement that states: -the name of the charging party -the name(s) of the defendant(s) -the nature of the discriminatory act

bona fide occupational qualification (BFOQ) defense

allows an employer to discriminate in hiring on the basis of sex, religion, or national origin (but NOT race or color) when doing so is necessary for the performance of the job

additional duties

another way to attempt to legitimize pay inequalities is to give members of 1 sex ______; the courts scrutinize these very closely and require that they: -are actually performed by those receiving the extra pay -regularly constitute a significant portion of the employee's job -are substantial, as opposed to inconsequential -are commensurate w/ the pay differential -are available on a nondiscriminatory basis the court will also make sure that different, comparable additional duties are NOT imposed on the parties NOT receiving the additional pay

federal laws

apply to everyone in the US -may be described as a "minimum" level of protection for all workers

civil rights act (CRA of 1964) title VII

deals with discrimination in employment -prohibits employers from hiring, firing, or otherwise discriminating in terms and conditions of employment -prohibits segregating employees in a manner that would affect their employment opportunities on the basis of their race, color, religion, sex, or national origin

unintentional discrimination

disparate impact often referred to as

intentional discrimination

disparate treatment sometimes referred to as

180 days

employee must file a charge with the EEOC within _______ of the alleged discriminatory act

age discrimination in employment act (ADEA of 1967)

enacted to prohibit employers from refusing to hire, discharging, or discriminating in terms and conditions of employment against employees or applicant age 40 or older -the language describing the prohibited conduct is virtually the same as that of title VII, except that age is the prohibiting basis for discrimination -applies to employers having 20 or more employees -also applies to employment agencies & to unions that have at least 25 members or that operate a hiring hall

seniority system defense

even though a seniority system, in which employees are given preferential treatment based on their length of service, may perpetuate past discrimination, such systems are considered bona fide and thus not illegal if: 1) the system applies equally to all persons 2) the seniority units follow industry practices 3) the seniority system did NOT have its genesis in discrimination 4) the system is maintained free of any illegal discriminatory purpose

civil rights act (of 1991)

extended the protections of title VII and ADA to US citizens working abroad for american employers or for foreign corporations controlled by a US employer -an exception is made if enforcement of title VII would violate foreign law

americans with disabilities act (ADA)

goal is to prevent employers from discriminating against employees and applicants w/ disabilities -attempts to attain this objective by requiring that employers make reasonable accommodations to the known physical or mental disabilities of an otherwise qualified person w/ a disability unless the necessary accommodation would impose an undue burden on the employer's business

religion and race

hostile environment cases have also been used in cases of discrimination based on ____________

punitive damages

in cases based on discrimination other than race, ________ are capped at: -$300,000 for employers of more than 500 employees -$100,000 for firms with 101 to 200 employees -$50,000 for firms with 100 or fewer employees an employer will NOT be held vicariously liable for ________ as long as it made "good faith efforts" to comply w/ federal law

content validity

isolates some skill used on the job and directly tests that skill

prima facie

latin for "at first view" -means that the evidence is sufficient to raise a presumption that discrimination occurred

DOMA section 3

limits the federal definition of marriage to being between 1 man and 1 woman

state laws

may give employees more, but NOT less, protection than federal laws

conciliation

negotiating a settlement between the two parties

EEOC

not always easy to determine whether a multinational corporation will be considered "american" enough to be covered by US anti-discrimination laws according to guidelines issued by the ______ in october 1993, they will first consider if the company is incorporated if the company is NOT incorporated, they will evaluate factors such as: -the company's principal place of business -the nationality of the controlling shareholders -the nationality and location of management no one factor is considered determinative, and the greater the number of factors linking the employer to the US, the more likely the employer is to be considered "american" to determine whether a foreign corporation is controlled by an american employer, they will again look at a broad range of factors such as: -interrelation of operations -common management -centralized labor relations -common ownership or financial control over the 2 entities a corporation that is clearly a foreign corporation and NOT controlled by an american entity is NOT subject to US equal employment laws

right to sue letter

not intended to be anything other than a statement that the plaintiff has followed the proper initial procedures and therefore may file a lawsuit -the plaintiff must have this letter in order to file private action

quid pro quo

occurs when a supervisor makes a sexual demand on someone of the opposite sex and this demand is reasonably perceived as a term or condition of employment -generally easier to prove form of sexual harassment

disparate treatment

occurs when an employee is treated differently on the basis of being a member of a protected class

disparate impact

occurs when an employer sets a requirement for employment that inadvertently precludes large numbers of a protected class from employment in a particular job

remedies for violations of EPA

plaintiffs may recover back pay in the amount of the difference between what they make and what is paid to members of the opposite sex, plus attorney fees -if the employer was not acting in good faith in paying the discriminatory wage rates, the courts will also award the plaintiff damages in an additional amount equal to the back pay

EPA

primary purpose of the law was to eliminate situations where women, working alongside men or replacing men, would be paid lower wages for doing substantially the same job

equal pay act (EPA of 1963)

prohibits any employer from discriminating within any "establishment . . . between employees on the basis of sex by paying wages to employees in such establishment at a rate less than the rate at which they pay wages to employees of the opposite sex . . . for equal work on jobs the performance of which requires equal skill, effort, and responsibility, and which are performed under similar working conditions EXCEPT where payment is made pursuant to: -a seniority system -a merit system -a system which measures earnings by quantity or quality of production -differential based on any factor other than sex

disparate treatment discrimination

proving _________ in employment under title VII process: 1) plaintiff (the employee) must demonstrate a prima facie case of discrimination 2) defendant (the employer) must articulate a legitimate, nondiscriminatory business reason for the action 3) plaintiff (the employee) must show that the reason given by the defendant (the employer) is a mere pretext

disparate impact discrimination

proving __________ cases under title VII process: 1) the plaintiff establishes statistically that the rule disproportionately restricts employment opportunities for a protected class 2) the defendant articulates why the practice or policy is a business necessity 3) the plaintiff shows that the alleged "necessity" is a mere pretext for discrimination

Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures (UGESP)

since 1978, __________ have guided gov't agencies charged with enforcing civil rights, and they provide guidance to employers and other interested persons about when ability tests are valid and job related -under these guidelines, tests must be validated in accordance w/ standards established by the american psychological association 3 types of validation are acceptable: -criterion related validity -content validity -construct validity

DOMA section 2

specifies that no state "shall be required to give effect" to same sex marriages granted by other states

equal

substantially the same in terms of all 4 factors: -skill -effort -responsibility -working conditions the factors are looked at individually (not weighted all together) -thus a sophisticated employer could vary at least 1 duty and then pay men and women different wages or salaries -however, to warrant different pay, the differences must be real and not just some minor change added to make the jobs appear different the legal standard is that the jobs must be "substantially similar", not perfectly equal

sexual harassment

the definition stated in the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) guidelines and accepted by the US Supreme Court is: "unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature" that implicitly or explicitly makes submission a term or condition of employment; makes employment decisions related to the individual dependent on submission to or rejection of such conduct; or has the purpose or effect of creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment 2 forms of this are recognized: - quid pro quo - hostile work environment (creation of)

back pay

the difference between the amount of money the plaintiff earned since the discriminatory act and the amount of money they would've earned had the discriminatory act never occurred -a successful plaintiff may recover __________ for up to 2 years from the time of the discriminatory act

illegal

the exception to the at-will rule is that an employer may NOT fire an employee for an _______ reason -broadly any termination based on a violation of a state statute, a state constitution, a federal law, the US constitution, or public policy is illegal

file a charge w/ the EEOC

the first step in initiating a title VII action is the aggrieved party to __________ -if no state agency exists, then file w/ the federal one

termination

the most common cause of ADEA cases -to prove a prima facie case of age discrimination involving a _______, the plaintiff must establish facts sufficient to create a reasonable inference that age was a determining factor of this the plaintiff raises this inference by showing that they: -belong to the statutorily protected class (age 40 or older) -was qualified for the position -was terminated under circumstances giving rise to an inference of discrimination

criterion related validity

the statistical relationship between test scores and objective criteria of job performance

sexual orientation

there is currently NO federal legislation that prohibits discrimination based on _________ -individual state laws do exist that prohibit such discrimination (only 21 states have laws protecting against such)

15

title VII of the Civil Rights Act applies to employers who have ____ or more employees for 20 consecutive weeks within 1 year and who are engaged in a business that affects commerce -the US gov't, corporations owned by the gov't, agencies of the district of columbia, indian tribes, private clubs, unions, and employment agencies are also covered by title VII

pregnancy discrimination act (PDA of 1987)

title VII was amended by this -this law expanded the definition based on gender to include discrimination based on pregnancy -"discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions constitutes unlawful sex discrimination under title VII" -under the act, temporary disability caused by pregnancy must be treated the same way as any other temporary disability

ADA

to bring a successful claim under ______, the plaintiff must show that they meet ALL of the following: -has a disability -was otherwise qualified for the job -was excluded from the job solely bc of that disability (enforced by the EEOC in the same way that title VII is enforced)

hostile environment

to prove this form of sexual harassment, a plaintiff must demonstrate the following: 1) they suffered intentional, unwanted discrimination bc of their sex 2) the harassment was severe or pervasive 3) the harassment negatively affected the terms, conditions, or privileges of their work environment 4) the harassment was both subjectively AND objectively unwelcome 5) management knew about the harassment, or should have known, and did nothing to stop it

executive exemption

under this exemption, an individual may be mandatorily retired after age 65 if 2 conditions are met: -they have been employed as a bona fide executive for at least 2 years immediately before retirement -on retirement they are entitled to nonforfeitable annual retirement benefits of at least $44,000 (termination of an older employee may be legal bc of _______)

merit defense

usually raised when hiring or promotion decisions are partially based on test scores -professionally developed ability tests that are NOT designed, intended, or used to discriminate may be used -while these tests may have an adverse impact on a class, as long as they are manifestly related to job performance, they do NOT violate the act

title VII

2 ways to prove discrimination under ______: 1) disparate treatment 2) disparate impact