Chapter 39: Equal Employment Opportunity Law
Other Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Laws
Major federal laws require equal pay for men and women doing equal work and forbid discrimination against older people and those with disabilities -the *equal pay act* does not prohibit all variations in wage rates paid to men and women but only those variations based solely on gender. ---The act sets fourth 4 exceptions and variation in wages are allowed where there is (1) a seniority system, (2) a merit system, (3) a system that measures earnings by quantity or quality of production, or (4) differential based on any factor other than gender -*The Age Discrimination in Employment Act* forbids discrimination by employers, unions, and employment agencies against persons *over 40 years of age* -*Discrimination against persons with disabilities*: The right of persons with disabilities to enjoy equal employment opportunities was established on the federal level with the enactment of the Rehabilitation Act --In general, the employer may not ask questions about whether an applicant will need reasonable accommodations to do the job --However, the employer may make preemployment inquires regarding the job applicant's ability to perform job-related functions ---After making a job offer (contingent upon the applicant's passing a medical examination), the employer may rescind the offer if the position in question poses a direct threat to the workers health or safety -*GINA* --the Genetic Information Nondisclosure Act was enacted to prevent discrimination on the basis of genetic information in health insurance and employment
Extraterritorial Employment
The 1991 act contains an exemption if compliance with Title VII or the ADA would cause a company to violate the law of a the foreign country in which it is located
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as Amended
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act seeks to eliminate employer and union practices that discriminate against employees and job applicants on the basis of... -race -color -religion -sex -national origin The law applies to the hiring process and to discipline, discharge, promotion, and benefits *Theories of Discrimination*: -Two principal legal theories under which a plaintiff may prove a case of unlawful employment discrimination: Disparate Treatment and Disparate Impact --*Disparate Treatment*: claim exits where an employer treats some individual less favorable than others because of their race, color, religion, etc. ----Proof of the employer's discriminatory motive is essential in a disparate treatment case --*Disparate Impact*: exists when an employer's facially neutral employment practices, such as hiring or promotion examinations, although neutrally applied and making no adverse reference to race, color, etc. have a significantly adverse or disparate impact on a protected group. ----In addition, the employment practice in question is not shown by the employer to be job related and consistent with business necessity *Disparate treatment and disparate impact may both be at issue in the same case* *The equal Employment Opportunity Commission* -EEOC is a five-member body appointed by the president to establish equal employment opportunity policy under the laws it administers -Title VII sets damages available to victims of discrimination --*more about this in the book* *Definition of "Supervisor": -If the harassing individual is the victim's coworker the employer is liable only if the employer was negligent in controlling working conditions -If the harasser is a "supervisor" who takes an adverse tangible employment action against the victim, the employer is strictly liable
Protected Classes and Exceptions
To successfully pursue a Title VII lawsuit, an individual must belong to a protected class and meet the appropriate burden of proof. --Exceptions exist for certain employment practices *Race and Color* -A primary purpose of the act is to provide fair employment opportunities for black Americans -Race: applies to all members of the four major racial groupings- White, Black, Native-American, Asian-Pacific *Religion* -Title VII requires employers to accommodate their employees' or prospective employees' religious practices -When pertaining to *garments worn for religious reasons*, employers should develop appropriate and justifiable policies for their business and provide training for supervisors on how to properly handle requests for religious accommodations --Safety risks may provide justifiable basis for a dress code -Employees have challenged employer bans on body art as religious discrimination--can tell people they need to cover them up if having them shown would negatively affect business/professionalism -Title VII permits religious societies to grant hiring preferences in favor of members of their religion. --It also provides an exemption for educational institutions to hire employees of a particular religion if the institution is owned, controlled, or managed by a particular religious society. *Sex* -Employers who discriminate against female or male employees because of their sex are held to be in violation of Title VII --The word "sex" as used by Title VII means a persons gender, not the persons sexual orientation -An employer must be able to show the criteria used to make an employment decision that has a disparate impact on women, such as minimum height and weight requirements, are, in fact, job related. -Employers are prohibited from treating pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions in a manner different form the manner in which other medical conditions are treated-- they must get the same temporary and long-term disability insurance, sick leave, and other forms of employee benefit program as everyone else --Also protects women from termination or other employment actions because of pregnancy *Sexual Harassment* -Two classifications of sexual harassment are: Tangible employment action and hostile work environment --*Tangible employment action*: involves situations in which a supervisor performs an "official act" of the enterprise, such as discharge, demotion, or undesirable reassignment against a subordinate employee b/c of the employee's refusal to submit to the supervisor's demand for sexual favors --*Hostile Work Environment*: occurs when a supervisor's conduct does not affect an employee's economic benefits but causes anxiety and "poisons" the work environment for the employee -*Nonsupervisors*: An employer is liable for the sexual harassment caused its employees by coworkers or customers *only when* it knew or should have known of the misconduct and failed to take prompt remedial action *Protection against Retaliation*: *National Origin*: -The Title VII protects members of all nationalities from discrimination *TITLE VII EXCEPTIONS* -*Bona Fide Occupational Qualification Exception*: It is not an unlawful employment practice for an employer to hire employees on the basic of religion, sex, or national origin in those certain instances where religion, sex, or national origin is a bona fide occupational requirement (BFOQ) reasonably necessary to the normal operation of a particular enterprise -*Testing and Educational Requirements*: Authorizes the use of "any professionally developed ability test that is not designed, intended, or used to discriminate" --these tests and requirements must be *job related* and bear a relationship tp job performance -*Seniority System*: provides that differences in employment terms based on a bona fide seniority system are sanctioned so long as the differences do no stem from an intention to discriminate. --The term "Seniority system" is generally understood to mean a set of rules that ensures that workers with longer years of continuous service for an employer will have a priority claim to a job over others with fewer years of service *Affirmative Action and Reverse Discrimination* -*Affirmative Action Plans*: plan to have a diverse and representative workforce --Under this, employers may undertake special recruiting and other efforts to hire and train minorities and women and help them advance within the company -*Reverse Discrimination* --When an employers AAP is not shown to be justified or "unnecessarily trammels" the interest of nonminority employees, it is often called reverse discrimination -*Executive Order*: --Presidential executive order regulates contractors and suncontractors doing business with the federal government. --This order forbids discrimination against minorities and women and in certain situations requires affirmative action to be taken to offer better employment opportunities to minorities and women