Chapter 19

 Equal opportunity in employment: The rights of all employees and job applicants  To be treated without discrimination  To be able to sue employers if they are discriminated against  Equal Employment Opportunity Commission: The federal administrative agency that is responsible for enforcing most federal antidiscrimination laws Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-2

 Right to sue letter: A letter that is issued by the EEOC if it chooses not to bring an action against an employer that authorizes a complainant to sue the employer for employment discrimination  Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009: A federal statute that permits a complainant to file an employment discrimination claim against an employer within 180 days of the most recent paycheck violation and to recover back pay for up to two years preceding the filing of the claim if similar violations occurred during the two-year period Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-3

 Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 applies to:  Employers with fifteen or more employees  All employment agencies  Labor unions with fifteen or more members  State and local governments and their agencies  Most federal government employment Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-4

 Disparate-treatment discrimination: Occurs when an employer discriminates against a specific individual because of his or her race, color, national origin, sex, or religion  Disparate-impact discrimination: Occurs when an employer discriminates against an entire protected class Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-5

 A successful plaintiff in a Title VII action can recover back pay and reasonable attorneys’ fees  A court can award punitive damages against an employer in a case involving an employer’s malice or reckless indifference to federally protected rights Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-6

 Title VII was primarily enacted to prohibit employment discrimination based on race, color and national origin  Race discrimination: Employment discrimination against a person because of his or her race  Violates Title VII Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-7

 National origin discrimination: Employment discrimination against a person because of his or her heritage, cultural characteristics, or the country of the person’s ancestors  Color discrimination: Employment discrimination against a person because of his or her color, for example, where a light-skinned person of a race discriminates against dark-skinned person of the same race Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-8

 Civil Rights Act of 1866: A federal statute enacted after the Civil War that says all persons “have the same right … to make and enforce contracts … as is enjoyed by white persons”  Prohibits racial and national origin employment discrimination  Gender discrimination: Discrimination against a person because of his or her gender Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-9

 Pregnancy Discrimination Act: A federal act that forbids employment discrimination because of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.  Sex-Plus Discrimination: An employer does not discriminate against a class as a whole but treats a subset of the class differently Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-10

 Sexual harassment: Lewd remarks, touching, intimidation, posting of indecent materials, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature that occurs on the job  Employers are not strictly liable for the sexual harassment of their employees  An employer may raise an affirmative defense against liability Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-11

 Discrimination against a person because of his or her religion or religious practices  Reasonable accommodation for religion: Under Title VII, an employer’s duty to reasonably accommodate the religious observances, practices, or beliefs of its employees if doing so does not cause an undue hardship on the employer Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-12

 Employers can select or promote employees based on merit  Often based on work, educational experience, and professionally developed ability tests  Bona fide occupational qualification: Permits discrimination based on protected classes other than race or color  Job related  Business necessity Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-13

 A federal statute that protects both sexes from pay discrimination based on sex  Extends to jobs that require equal skill, equal effort, equal responsibility, and similar working conditions  Justifications for differential wages:  Seniority  Merit  Quantity or quality of product  “Any factor other than sex” Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-14

 Age Discrimination in Employment Act: A federal statute that prohibits age discrimination practices against employees who are 40 years and older  Older Workers Benefit Protection Act: A federal statute that prohibits age discrimination regarding employee benefits Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-15

 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): A federal statute that imposes obligations on employers and providers of public transportation, telecommunications, and public accommodations to accommodate individuals with disabilities Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-16

 Title I of the ADA: A title of a federal statute that prohibits employment discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities in regard to job application procedures, hiring, compensation, training, promotion, and termination  Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA) of 2008: A federal act that amends the ADA by expanding the definition of disability, requiring that the definition of disability be broadly construed, and requiring commonsense assessments in applying certain provisions of the ADA Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-17

 Qualified individual with a disability: A person who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity who, with or without reasonable accommodation, can perform the essential functions of the job that person desires or holds  Title I of the ADA limits an employer’s ability to inquire into or test for an applicant’s disabilities Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-18

 Reasonable accommodation for disability: Under Title I of the ADA, an employer’s duty to reasonably accommodate an individual’s disability if doing so does not cause an undue hardship on the employer  Undue hardship  Uncovered Conditions Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-19

 A federal statute that makes it illegal for an employer to discriminate against job applicants and employees based on genetic information  Genetic information discrimination: Discrimination based on information from which it is possible to determine a person’s propensity to be stricken by diseases Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-20

 Unlawful act taken by an employer against an employee for filing a charge of discrimination or participating in a discrimination proceeding Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-21

 A policy which provides that certain job preferences will be given to minority or other protected-class applicants when an employer makes an employment decision  Reverse discrimination: Discrimination against a group that is usually thought of as a majority Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-22

Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall.19-23