Chapter 16 Employment Discrimination Final Tuesday April 28 7 9pm in Daniel 313 150 MC questions need 2 scantrons Review Starting Monday finish Wednesday 4 15 15 Employment Situations Hiring promoting training firing and environment to work in Discrimination Laws Federal Acts o Equal Pay Act of 1963 If people perform the same work they need to get the same pay regardless of sex No discrimination based solely on sex Merit based quantity quality of production seniority all okay of 1964 Civil Rights Act Federal Law that only applies to employers o Title VII with 15 or more workers In an employment situation you can t discriminate against someone based upon race color religion sex gender only not sexual preference or marital status or national origin Religious practices employer has to make reasonable accommodations for an employees religious practices employer only has to incur a minor expense Sets up protected classes and says you can t make employment decisions based upon the fact that they re in not in that protected class o Pregnancy Discrimination Act employer may not discriminate against women based on pregnancy childbirth or related medical conditions o Sexual Harassment Companies need a clear written company policy that makes it clear that sexual harassment needs to Make it clear it s not allowed and illegal Clearly define sexual harassment Internal way to address issues before it goes outside of company designated person in legal department o Age discrimination Act makes it illegal to discriminate against people over the age of 40 Only applies to employers with 20 or more employees o Law that prohibits discrimination based upon Genetic Information International regards to discrimination o US company has employees working abroad US employer still subject to US laws for US employees working abroad and to foreign countries laws Most countries have mandatory retirement ages Few European countries have any legislation making discrimination based on personal characteristics illegal US has more legislation than most other countries Discrimination Complaint Process o If company has internal program maybe pursue that first o Bring charge of discrimination Ch 16 pg 1 4 15 15 EEOC Equal Employment Opportunities Commission Federal and State offices You have 180 days from the date of the offense to file a complaint If you miss that go to State Law because most of them give you up to 300 days to file the complaint File complaint by mail or in person Once compliant is filed EEOC investigates the complaint read complaint interview you fellow employees and employer If I appears that there has been discrimination burden shifts to employer to explain why it isn t discriminatory defense EEOC may try to settle dispute by mediation or may offer a settlement Can t agree to terms in mediation or settlement EEOC issues their findings and a Right to Sue letter right to go to court o EEOC Can t force a solution on the parties o EEOC pretty much knows when there is discrimination or not might go to court though if you don t agree with damages Can go to federal or state court EEOC has authority to file their own complaint as well Constructive Discharge Employer makes work environment so uncomfortable that you quit you technically haven t been fired so court says you need to prove it was so bad and you can file complaint of discrimination and or sue employer doesn t maintain a livable work situation for you o 2 forms of discrimination court distinguishes between Disparate treatment employer intentionally discriminated Disparate impact unintentional discrimination but the impact was still that you were discriminated against Only matters in terms of remedies damages usually o In all discrimination areas employer needs to have clear polices about what is permitted in workplace and what isn t Some supreme court cases say that it is important that companies have some sort of internal system to resolve issues before it comes to the courts o Certain decisions can be made by employers that aren t considered discriminatory statutory defenses Business Necessity employer can show that a certain decision was made based upon seniority educational requirements or qualifications of an employee than the person not hired can t sue you for discrimination Administer Professional Developed Ability Test aptitude test developed by a 3rd party based on description of job and characteristics that have historically proven characteristics of someone that is successful in a position if you scored worse and wasn t hired you can t sue saying that you were discriminated against Ch 16 pg 2 4 15 15 Seniority or Merit System Providing benefits or terminating someone based off of seniority or merit system A lot of times people with seniority are protected and the court says that s okay People with more time on the job and older will vest in benefits before younger people If people are paid more because they re more productive that s okay If someone feels like they re in a protected class and didn t get as much they won t win suit Bona fide occupational qualification what appears to be discrimination is okay if sex religion or national origin but not race is necessary for a position Job opening for women s clothing bona fide occupational requirement that a women is hired not discriminatory against men 90 of customers are of a national origin that s a reason for someone to hire a certain class and not from another Voluntary Retirement Incentives Early retirement plans only offered to people over a certain age or after so many years with company You haven t discriminated against younger people because traditionally these incentives go to the older people and you haven t against the older people because it is voluntary o Minimize Claims Clear company policies of what is permitted or not and what is discrimination Remedies to discrimination court or EEOC o Back pay discriminated against and were dismissed from employer get pay restored from date of action to date of court decision o Forward or Front pay pay to carry you until you get another job reasonable generally not 100 and only continues for what court says is reasonable o Compensatory Damages example medical costs Most discrimination doesn t result in physical injury but maybe psychologist or something any medical and travel costs incurred o Unusual In discrimination complaint attorney s fees can be awarded to winning party Incentive of why people will be willing to settle at EEOC