Equal Employment Opportunity and Anti-Discrimination Laws

¶ … features of a major area of law. The second part of the scholarly paper presents a thorough review of an organizational problem based on the rules and regulations presented in the first part of the research paper.

The reference page appends twelve sources in APA format.

Equal Employment Opportunity and Anti-discrimination Laws

The academic world as well as the world of profession and occupation offers uncountable options in the form of innumerable areas of study, review and critique. The world where we live in thus needs to provide equal opportunity to all for this is the world where souls thrive and excel by being successful in different areas of study. Apart from various areas of study and scrutiny including psychology, physiology, chemistry, biology, botany, physics, general science, general knowledge, computer sciences, management, marketing, mathematics and several languages, law is one of the most thriving, ancient and popular as well as a highly significant area of theory and application, study and practice. It is law that equips the people who believe in it with hope to find justice and to fight back injustices. It is the law that provides its followers and the people of the world with a thorough system to follow and to make decisions accordingly. It is the law that helps authorities maintain peace and harmony at all levels of the society and assists authorities in charge to set limits and take appropriate actions. Thus, law is that force, that area of study and that helpful tool and powerful guide that binds all strings of the society together thereby providing a thorough system of values, rules and regulations for the people of the society or of the country for that matter to abide by. On the same account, this research paper is divided into two distinct parts. Part one of our scholarly paper studies the rules and regulations presented to the people by the area of law that provides anti-discriminatory laws thereby offering equal employment opportunities to all the people entering and wanting to be the part of the corporate world by providing their services or with the aid of their talent or educational qualifications. The second part of our research paper, however, will apply the knowledge learnt as well as the information given in the first part of the paper to a problem or an issue faced in an organizational setting. Thus begins the first part of our research paper.

Part One: Equal Employment Opportunity & Anti-discriminatory Laws

Law offers equal opportunity in employment to all the citizens worldwide with the aid of Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. This is done because the people of the world particularly those that constituted the under privileged lot felt a strong need to speak up their minds and raise their opinions against the discrimination that is prevalent in varied forms at different levels of the society. Thus in order to curb the problem of discrimination in the employment sector, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission abbreviated as EEOC came into existence under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and started functioning on July 2, 1965 (U.S. EEOC: An Overview, Office of Communications and Legislative Affairs, 1998). Thus, with the aid of the drafting and implementation of several anti-discriminatory laws, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission provides its citizens with the employment opportunity that strictly forbids discrimination at all grounds and on all basis and in any form. "The EEOC carries out its work at headquarters and in 50 field offices throughout the United States. Individuals who believe they have been discriminated against in employment begin our processes by filing administrative charges. Individual Commissioners may also initiate charges that the law has been violated. Through the investigation of charges, if the EEOC determines there is "reasonable cause" to believe that discrimination has occurred, it must then seek to conciliate the charge to reach a voluntary resolution between the charging party and the respondent. If conciliation is not successful, the EEOC may bring suit in federal court. Whenever the EEOC concludes its processing of a case, or earlier upon the request of a charging party, it issues a "notice of right to sue" which enables the charging party to bring an individual action in court" (U.S. EEOC: An Overview, Office of Communications and Legislative Affairs, 1998). The primary statutes that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission includes are as follows: (U.S. EEOC: An Overview, Office of Communications and Legislative Affairs, 1998) (*All the pointers below or the statues enforced by the commission given below are taken verbatim from the source under consideration)

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, which prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin;

the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, as amended (ADEA), which prohibits employment discrimination against individuals 40 years of age and older;

the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (EPA), which prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender in compensation for substantially similar work under similar conditions;

the Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), which prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of disability in both the public and private sector, excluding the federal government;

the Civil Rights Act of 1991, which includes provisions for monetary damages in cases of intentional discrimination and clarifies provisions regarding disparate impact actions; and,

Section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, which prohibits employment discrimination against federal employees with disabilities.

Thus in order to study in detail as well as to provide an analysis of the anti-discriminatory laws that are enforced by the equal employment opportunity commission which serves as the most adequate and sound platform for the people world over, our research paper will now provide a detailed account of each principal anti-discriminatory law that helps people fight for their right to equal employment opportunity.

I. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

According to the EEOC, the purpose of which is "to promote equal opportunity in employment through administrative and judicial enforcement of the federal civil rights laws and through education and technical assistance" (U.S. EEOC: An Overview, Office of Communications and Legislative Affairs, 1998), no employer has the right to discriminate its employees on the grounds of race, color, caste, creed, language, origin that is national identity or sexual orientation (Title VII of the Civil Rights Act 1964, 1997). Law permits the people of the world to fight for their rights and to face the challenge of employment discrimination with the help of Title VII of the Civil rights Act of 1964 that permits individuals to file charges against their employees that indulge into employment discrimination in any form thereby violating the law that states according to the Section 703 of the act in the following words:

a) "It shall be an unlawful employment practice for an employer

1) to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any individual, or otherwise to discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of such individual's race, color, religion, sex, or national origin; or (2) to limit, segregate, or classify his employees or applicants for employment in any way which would deprive or tend to deprive any individual of employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affect his status as an employee, because of such individual's race, color, religion, sex, or national origin" (Title VII of the Civil Rights Act 1964, 1997).

Thus with the enforcement of this act, the American law helps the people to protect themselves from any kind of employment discrimination. On the same account, the minorities belonging to different race and origin as well as having distinct color of skin are protected against all forms of employment discrimination in America and can therefore file charges against those employers that fail to obey the rules and regulations set forth by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Thus, in companies where promotions are withheld and employees are deprived of an opportunity to excel in their field of chosen profession for which they have the talent as well as are qualified, employees can fight against the employment discrimiantion applying the rules and regulations as set forth in the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Moreover, those employers that fail to adhere to the civil rights act of 1964 in a manner that they do not refer or recommend an employee or an applicant are termed as the violators of the law and are therefore subject to the penalties that the law has drafted for them (Title VII of the Civil Rights Act 1964, 1997). In addition to the above, it is an "unlawful employment practice for a labor organization to exclude or to expel from its membership, or otherwise to discriminate against, any individual because of his race, color, religion, sex, or national origin (2) to limit, segregate, or classify its membership or applicants for membership, or to classify or fail or refuse to refer for employment any individual, in any way which would deprive or tend to deprive any individual of employment opportunities, or would limit such employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affect his status as an employee or as an applicant for employment, because of such individual's race, color, religion, sex, or national origin or (3) to cause or attempt to cause an employer to discriminate against an individual in violation of this section" (Title VII of the Civil Rights Act 1964, 1997).

All About Religious Discrimination:

Thus from reviewing and studying in detail the clauses of Title VII of the civil Rights Act of 1964, it is evident that the American law with the aid of this anti-discriminatory law strictly prohibits religious discrimination at all levels of an organization. Hence, through the enforcement of this anti-discriminatory law, the American authorities demand better religious accommodation in the corporate world where every employee is well-aware of his or her right to equal employment opportunity despite the religious differences among the people constituting the workforce. "Flexible scheduling, voluntary substitutions or swaps, job reassignments and lateral transfers are examples of accommodating an employee's religious beliefs" (Facts about religious discrimination, 2002). In addition to the above, "employers cannot schedule examinations or other selection activities in conflict with a current or prospective employee's religious needs, inquire about an applicant's future availability at certain times, maintain a restrictive dress code, or refuse to allow observance of a Sabbath or religious holiday, unless the employer can prove that not doing so would cause an undue hardship" (Facts about religious discrimination, 2002). However, in order to effectively enforce the enactments of this law, the government fully supports the employers in the form of making adjustments and payments to them if they make a claim based on the legal concept of an "undue hardship" (Facts about religious discrimination, 2002).

All About Race-Color Discrimination:

Where Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 strictly prohibits all employers against employment discrmination based on religion, creed, national origin, age and pregnancy, it also prohibits the employers any employment discrimination that is linked with race or skin color whether directly or indirectly (Facts About Race/Color Discrimination, 2002). In addition to the above, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission under Title VII further "prohibits employment decisions based on stereotypes and assumptions about abilities, traits, or the performance of individuals of certain racial groups. Title VII prohibits both intentional discrimination and neutral job policies that disproportionately exclude minorities and that are not job related. Equal employment opportunity cannot be denied because of marriage to or association with an individual of a different race; membership in or association with ethnic-based organizations or groups; or attendance or participation in schools or places of worship generally associated with certain minority groups" (Facts About Race/Color Discrimination, 2002).

All About Pregnancy Discrimination:

Those women who are expecting a child while applying for a job vacancy HAVE TO BE considered on equal basis as that of other applicants applying. This is because, a new amendment in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 suggests that "on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions" (Facts About Pregnancy Discrimination, 2002) no woman can be discriminated. In case any employer shows even traces of discrimination, the applicant has the right to fight for her right to equal employment opportunity and file charges against the company responsible for employment discrmination (Facts About Pregnancy Discrimination, 2002). Thus, with this change in the law, the authorities have made it obvious to the public that women are rapidly seeking acceptance at all levels of the corporate world. On the same account, "an employer cannot refuse to hire her because of its prejudices against pregnant workers or the prejudices of co-workers, clients or customers" (Facts About Pregnancy Discrimination, 2002). Furthermore, an employee that is pregnant has the right to remain on a sick leave and enjoy the sick benefits as well as those benefits that the company is suppose to offer to a disabled employee including "modified tasks, alternative assignments, disability leave or leave without pay" (Facts About Pregnancy Discrimination, 2002). However, employers are given the liberty as well as the right to demand sick leave certificates or doctoral statements from those employees seeking sick leave on the basis of pregnancy or other related medical or biological reasons (Facts About Pregnancy Discrimination, 2002). Moreover, "employers must hold open a job for a pregnancy related absence the same length of time jobs are held open for employees on sick or disability leave" (Facts About Pregnancy Discrimination, 2002). In addition to the above, with the help of this positive amendment in Title VII, the American law has equipped the women of the American society and this modern world with the right to demand health insurance expense as well as other fringe benefits from their employers arising out of their pregnancy. Nevertheless, Health insurance for expenses arising from abortion is not required, except where the life of the mother is endangered" (Facts About Pregnancy Discrimination, 2002). In addition to the above, "employers must provide the same level of health benefits for spouses of male employees as they do for spouses of female employees" (Facts About Pregnancy Discrimination, 2002).

Furthermore, through Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, employers are warned not to discriminate their employees on the basis of their "national origin" (Facts about national origin discrimination, 2002).

All About National Origin Discrimination:

Thus, "no one can be denied equal employment opportunity because of birthplace, ancestry, culture, or linguistic characteristics common to a specific ethnic group. Equal employment opportunity cannot be denied because of marriage or association with persons of a national origin group; membership or association with specific ethnic promotion groups; attendance or participation in schools, churches, temples or mosques generally associated with a national origin group; or a surname associated with a national origin group" (Facts about national origin discrimination, 2002). Hence, on similar grounds, employers cannot force their employees to speak English all the time at their workplaces. Furtehrmore, the American employees need to keep in mind the consequences of violating the rules and regulations set forth in Title VII if and when they intend to take any unlawful step on the basis of the same (Facts about national origin discrimination, 2002). However, all employees must be well-informed in case an employer thinks it is essential to speak only English at all times for the strength and growth of his business (Facts about national origin discrimination, 2002). Excluding job performance and business needs, if and when employees or applicants are deprived of an employment opportunity or a pormotion in an existing organizational setting based on their accent or fluency, the employers will be considered the violators of the law and their steps taken in that direction will be considered unlawful practices (Facts about national origin discrimination, 2002). Thus, in order to effectively enforce the lawful bindings of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Equal Employement Opportunity Commission has been established and given certain powers through which it seeks to provide assistance to those individuals that are or have been or can be the victims of employment discrimination (Title VII of the Civil Rights Act 1964, 1997).

II. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967

Another highly significant anti-discriminatory law includes prohibition of employment discrimination on the basis of age under the Employment Act of 1967. This is also termed as The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 also abbreviated as ADEA. This anti-discriminatory law is particualrly drafted to protect people of age forty or more against the employment discrimination on the grounds of age (The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967). In addition to the above, "the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act (Pub. L. 101-433) amends several sections of the ADEA" (The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, 1997).

According to section 4 of the ADEA, a) "It shall be unlawful for an employer- (1) to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any individual or otherwise discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of such individual's age; (2) to limit, segregate, or classify his employees in any way which would deprive or tend to deprive any individual of employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affect his status as an employee, because of such individual's age; or 3) to reduce the wage rate of any employee in order to comply with this chapter.

A b) It shall be unlawful for an employment agency to fail or refuse to refer for employment, or otherwise to discriminate against, any individual because of such individual's age, or to classify or refer for employment any individual on the basis of such individual's age.

It shall be unlawful for a labor organization- (1) to exclude or to expel from its membership, or otherwise to discriminate against, any individual because of his age; (2) to limit, segregate, or classify its membership, or to classify or fail or refuse to refer for employment any individual, in any way which would deprive or tend to deprive any individual of employment opportunities, or would limit such employment opp ortunities or otherwise adversely affect his status as an employee or as an applicant for employment, because of such individual's age; (3) to cause or attempt to cause an employer to discriminate against an individual in violation of this section" (The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, 1997). In addition to the above, this act also forbids employers as well as all the labor organizations from employment discrimination against those employees or applicants who have at some point in life taken help or contributed whether directly or indirectly to this anti-discriminatory law (The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, 1997). Furthermore, according to the act "it shall be unlawful for an employer, labor organization, or employment agency to print or publish, or cause to be printed or published, any notice or advertisement relating to employment by such an employer or membership in or any classification or referral for employment by such a labor organization, or relating to any classification or referral for employment by such an employment agency, indicating any preference, limitation, specification, or discrimination, based on age" (The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, 1997). Thus, with the aid of this act, the equal employment opportunity has provided hope, justice and a platform for those individuals who are capable of remaining productive citizens despite their age against all kinds of age discrimination.

III: The Equal Pay Act of 1963 (EPA)

The Equal Pay Act of 1963 is yet another example of anti-discriminatory laws that safeguard the interests of the American public by providing them help and legal protection against the employement discrimination. The Equal Pay Act of 1963 or EPA is enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and it forms an integral part of the "Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938" (The Equal Pay Act of 1963, 1997).

Over the years, women have managed to gain confidence in their ability to perform equally good as their male counterparts and have gained acceptance in the corporate world depsite the gender bias and discrimination that this world in general and the society in particular is infected with. Law as well as the law-related authorities have a major role to play in helping women gain corporate acceptance in the form of equal employment opportunity and this act which is called as the Equal Pay Act of 1963 is a living example and an evidence of the same. With the aid of this anti-discriminatory law, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has made an effort to protect women of the American society against the employment discrimination on the basis of gender. This act as its title suggests provides women to fight against employment discrimination if and when they are made victim to it in the form of inadequate working conditions as compared to their male colleagues, in the form of wage scale and all other related issues pertaining to the employment sector. Thus, through Equal Pay Act of 1963, the law "prohibits sex-based wage discrimination between men and women in the same establishment who are performing under similar workign conditions" (The Equal Pay Act of 1963, 1997). The provisions and enactments of this anti-discriminatory law appears in the volume twenty-nine of the United States Code (The Equal Pay Act of 1963, 1997). The act clearly states the following as a strict prohibition of any kind of wage discrimination on the basis of sex according to Section 206:

d) (1) No employer having employees subject to any provisions of this section shall discriminate, within any establishment in which such employees are employed, between employees on the basis of sex by paying wages to employees in such establishment at a rate less than the rate at which he pays wages to employees of the opposite sex in such establishment 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 such payment is made pursuant to (i) a seniority system; (ii) a merit system; (iii) a system which measures earnings by quantity or quality of production; or (iv) a differential based on any other factor other than sex: Provided, That an employer who is paying a wage rate differential in violation of this subsection shall not, in order to comply with the provisions of this subsection, reduce the wage rate of any employee.

Thus, with the help of this act, the law legally binds all the employers to pay their workforce consituting of workers belonging to opposite sexes equally if and when the working conditions, nature of job, work performance, duties, responsibilities, expertise, qualification and other job related issues are similar in nature, quantity as well as quality. Hence, in organziations as well as in professional fields where women once complianed of being paid inadequately as a result of gender prejudice, today female workforce of those firms are far more protected and comfortable as well as confident of who they are and what they are capable of in terms of their rights to equal employment opportunity.

Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA):

Employment Non-discrimination Act also abbreviated as ENDA further prohibits employers against employment discrimination that is based on sex and related to wage (The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), 2002). The Employment Non-discrimination Act was a bill presented to the congress in order to protect gays and lesbians from discrimination practised on the basis of sex. In the year 1994, the bill also known as ENDA stated a number of laws which provided assurity as well as security against discrimination of employment on the basis of sex (The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), 2002). The former president of The United States of America, Bill Clinton highly supported this bill and was of the view that if the bill was successfully approved it would result in providing assurance to all the Americans irrespective of their sex regarding their employment and job security. This bill was further supported by several other establishments as well as by various religious associations which included the National Council of Churches, the National Catholic Conference for Interracial Justice and many more (The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), 2002). According to the Section 2 of the version published in the year 1996, this bill stated the following:

An organization or any body operating to provide employment to people or any other healthy prospects regarding employment must deal with individuals on the basis of equal standards and none of the individuals must be treated on the basis of sexual inclination. In addition to the above, the bill also protects those individuals that have been or can be victims of employment discrimination only on the basis of the fact that they are remotely or directly connected or aquainted with those individuals that have already suffered the blow of employment discrimination on the basis of sex. Moreover the bill presented several other policies which were meant to protect gays and lesbians against discrimination in employment on the basis of sex and also stated that any heterosexual as well as bisexual is allowed to sue or charge those who refuse to employ them on the basis of sexual discrimination. The bill highlighted the importance of all individuals receiving equal rights and protection including gays and lesbians as well as heterosexual and bisexual individuals. According to ENDA all individual employees were subject to similar treatment hence incase of a gay or a lesbian receiving special treatments, other individuals are allowed to enjoy equal treatment (The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), 2002).

Thus, with the help of the Employment Non-discrimination Act, the gay and lesbian individuals were protected against discrimination based on sex and were guaranteed equal rights and job opportunities. ENDA succeeded in providing support and help to such individuals by presenting laws that further stated that gays and lesbians would not be judged on the basis of individual traits which do not attach any relevance to their work thereby placing their judgement on separate individual qualities and abilities. Moreover constant efforts as well as stringent measures are being taken in order to see ENDA passing the Senate as several polls have suggested that a huge number of people favour this Act and approve of equal employment opportunities in the workplace.

Employment Discrimination against Gays and Lesbians:

In addition to the aforementioned Employment Non-discrimination Act or ENDA, several orders have been passed and stringent measures have been taken in order to safeguard every individual against discrimination of employment based on sex particularly in the "executive branch of the federal government." In the year 1998, the President of United States of America, Bill Clinton commanded orders so as to protect every individual including gays, lesbians, bisexuals, heterosexuals, men and women (Employment discrimination against gays and lesbians, 2002). President Bill Clinton directed these orders following the order made by President Nixon regarding discrimination based on ethnicity, color and creed. According to some people, this order could also be directed towards private businesses working with the governmental organizations.

However there were several individuals belonging to different organizations who were determined to upturn the order made by President Bill Clinton, which included individuals like Tom Delay and diplomat Joel Hefley. Joel Hefley tried to bring about certain changes in the executive order but he failed to achieve the required number of votes. "161 Republicans and 15 Democrats voted for the change whereas 63 Republicans along with 188 Democrats and one Independent voted against the change" (Employment discrimination against gays and lesbians, 2002). It was the first time that Congress supported the policy regarding discrimination practised on the basis of sex. In response to this achievement the President Clinton stated: "I am gratified that the House has defeated an attempt to overturn my executive order providing a uniform policy to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation in the federal civilian workforce...This vote reflected the values of our nation...The American people believe in fairness, not discrimination" (Employment discrimination against gays and lesbians, 2002). In spite of the "executive order" (Employment discrimination against gays and lesbians, 2002) commanded by the President and the defeat faced by Joel Hefley, there are several other individuals as well as organizations that have been determined to take firm and strict measures in order to upturn the President's order or make modifications in the order. For instance head of the Houston chapter of the Log Cabin Republicans, Dale Carpenter and organizations like Kentucky Baptist Homes for Children. The second is a "non-profit" (Employment discrimination against gays and lesbians, 2002) association which suffered a court case in the year 2000 for practicing discrimination against Alicia Pedreira by laying her off their organization on the grounds that she is a lesbian.

Hence it is evident that there are several laws and acts enforced by the government that have played a cardinal role in providing protection to gays and lesbians against discrimination of employment on the basis of sexual inclination.

IV: The Civil Rights Act of 1991

The Civil Rights Act of 1991 is another positive leap in the legalities associated with the equal employment opportunity and against all forms of employment discrimination. This anti-discriminatory law is sub-divided into four distinct titles with the last title that is the Title IV consituting of the "general provisions" pertaining to the equal employment opportunity and possible employment practices that can be termed as unlawful (The Civil Rights Act of 1991, 1997). The "government employee rights" come under the head of Title III whereas Title II deals with the concept of "glass ceiling" (The Civil Rights Act of 1991, 1997). According to 42 U.S.C. 2000e note, "this title sets up a "Glass Ceiling Commission" to focus attention on, and complete a study relating to, the existence of artificial barriers to the advancement of women and minorities in the workplace, and to make recommendations for overcoming such barriers. The Commission is to be composed of 21 members, with the Secretary of Labor serving as the Chairperson of the Commission. This title does not directly impose any responsibilities or obligations on the EEOC except to provide information and technical assistance as requested by the new Commission" (The Civil Rights Act of 1991, 1997). Title I offers "federal civil rights remedies" (The Civil Rights Act of 1991, 1997). This is because the primary aim and mission of this act is to "provide appropriate remedies for intentional discrimination and unlawful harassment in the workplace... To codify the concepts of "business necessity" and "job related"... To confirm statutory authority and provide statutory guidelines for the adjudication of disparate impact suits under title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964... To respond to recent decisions of the Supreme Court by expanding the scope of relevant civil rights statutes in order to provide adequate protection to victims of discrimination" (The Civil Rights Act of 1991, 1997).

V: The American With Disabilities Act