Race and Gender Discrimination Multicultural Diversity Sex

Race and Gender Discrimination

Multicultural Diversity

Sex Discrimination

Age Discrimination

This paper discusses literature regarding the Equal Employment Opportunity Act which helps protect both applicants and employees from being discriminated against on the basis of their race, religion, age, sex, gender or disabilities. It also discusses and explores the roles of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which is a federal agency that investigates and enforces the laws that were enacted from the EEOA. This paper also explores the notion that despite our modern social advances, we are not totally removed from discrimination of all types in the workplace. The role and relationship of the hospitality industry as it pertains to laws and regulations is also discussed.

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Introduction

The Equal Employment Opportunity Act was created and born out of Title VII of The Civil Rights Act of 1964; it consists of a series of laws that are all aimed at preventing discrimination of various and multiple types. The passage of the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972 resulted as a revision to the already mentioned Civil Rights Act of 1964; out of this the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was created (Hayes & Ninemeier). It has been amended several times throughout the years, and as it stands today it protects both employees and applicants in discrimination in hiring, promotion, discharge, pay, fringe benefits, job training, classification and other employments aspects on the basis of color, race, religion, sex, and national origin (www.dol.gov). This law is of great importance in both American history, and the history of how employment regulations and strategies are devised and carried out in both the workplace and during the hiring process. This was the first federal law created and designed to protect employees and applicants from discrimination, needless to say it was an innovative and groundbreaking step that helped promote and ensure that individuals received just treatment in regards to employment opportunities. During this innovative enactment of law the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was also formed. This commission is a governmental agency charged with ensuring that employers comply with the regulations of the EEOA. The commission does so by handing down employment guidelines and also monitoring the employment practices of corporations and companies. They also protect employees from discrimination and Running Head: Insert Title Here

employer mal-practices by prosecuting and punishing those who violate and fail to uphold and respect the EEOA. The EEOC has a set of regulations and guidelines which are not law, but must be respected nevertheless, due to influential court decisions that give power to these guidelines (Bohlander 125).

The foundation for the Equal Employment Oppurtunity Act was initiated in 1964, but has since been amended and enhanced in order to it further and more effectively achieve it intended purposes. Along with the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, there are some key judicial and legal unfoldings that have transpired. Title I and V of the American Disabilities Act protects qualified individuals against employment discrimination on the basis of that person being disabled. It also describes disability discrimination on the part of the employer as failing to make reasonable accommodations for the mental or physical limitations of employees or applicants. A classic example of this would be an employer's failure to provide a wheel chair ramp for an invalid person. Another federal statute that enhances the EEOA is The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, this protects applicants and employees 40 years or older from being unfairly treated on the basis of their age. Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 protects applicants and employees from discrimination based on genetic information.

Race and Gender Discrimination

The enactment and of these federal laws and statues helps to create a strict consensus regarding the appropriate way that hiring, handling and treatment of employees by employers should be conducted. These regulations are very important

Insert Here and vital because they help create a culture and society that promotes fairness throughout the entirety of the employment process, from the time an applicant applies and even until an employee decides to retire. They help promote justice in a very effective and efficient manner. This is very important considering that employment and financial security is one of life's most basic, vital and important needs. The EEOC helps build the confidence of applicants and employees, it acts as its defender and redeemer in times of unfairness or injustice in the workplace. The question however remains, is discrimination in the workplace for applicants and employees non-existent? Or does a sentiment of discrimination and prejudice remain? It is important that these questions be taken into consideration especially when addresings the rights of those that can be affected. The section of the population that must be taken into account in regards to workplace discrimination are those groups that are discriminated against on the basis of the race, gender, sex, age, disabilities and genetics. These are the groups that have been traditionally the most discriminated against, within these groups the specific classifications of being a minority, homosexual, over the age of 40, and being physically and mentally disabled. This is particularly important and must be taken to account with great fervor as it relates to the hospitality industry. The hospitality industry consists of a wide ranging variety of fields that include the businesses of lodging, restaurant, event planning, theme parks, transportation and other fields within the category of tourism. The hospitality industry achieves revenues in the billions of dollars per year; this money however, is generated through the vulnerable and often not dependable cash flow of disposable income.

Considering that the revenue and financial stability of the hospitality industry is dependent on such an unreliable and fragile variable like disposable income, it is vital for employers and business owners to consider the population they are catering to, and that by doing so they reflect a fair, just, modern and civil approach in the hiring and treatment of their employees. With today's abundance of aggressive media coverage both electronic and in print it is very easy for a company to receive negative exposure if it were to discriminate or treat employees unfairly, this is especially true for large and popular corporations and companies. The media loves stories and they enjoy publishing scandals and controversies. Few issues are more controversial than employee and applicant discrimination in the workplace. Going through a media scandal can severely affect the image of a company. This is something that human resource managers must try to avoid at all costs. Not only to prevent negative fallout that results in adverse financial outcomes for the company but also to preserve the integrity, dignity and peace of a workplace. In today's economy even the smallest of decisions can make or break a company especially in the hospitality industry which is so reliant on the public and on preserving their image.

Most human resources managers in professional industries are likely to say that one of their most important and significant jobs tasks is to created employee job descriptions as one of the first steps in employee recruitment. According to Somerville this helps the HR managers themselves concentrate with clarity as to what specific set of skills a potential candidate for hire must have. What is even more important before taking that step is "that all members of the recruitment process recognize that regulations of the hiring process in the hospitality industry" (Somerville 22). There is a clearly defined legal structure that must be followed in the hospitality industry, it is important that the laws and regulations be followed because they fall directly under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Acts. In order for any company to succeed within the hospitality industry it is important that they adhere to these rules. Otherwise they risk severe and potentially crushing disciplinary actions and financial penalties which are carried out by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The hospitality Industry has had difficulties with recruiting and retaining high quality and talented employees in the past. It is vital that companies within this industry follow all rules and regulations associated with the Equal Employment Opportunity Act in order to avoid further employee attrition which is severely detrimental to these companies and corporations. The EEOC plays a very crucial role in the hospitality industry, according to Hayes and Ninemeier the EEOC "investigates, meditates, and even sometimes files lawsuits on behalf of employees, businesses found to have discriminated can be ordered to compensate employees for lost wages, attorney fees, and other expenses" (Hayes & Ninemeier p.34). Taking into account the potential negative circumstances involved it is vital that human resources professionals follow all regulations and aspects of the Equal Employment Opportunity Act.

Although there has been and drastic improvement brought on by the EEOA and EEOC, there is still work that need to be done in order to eliminate all discrimination for the hiring and employment processes. According to figure provide by EEOC the number of discrimination or employee rights abuse cases remained steady in numerical figures

Insert here from the year 2001 until the year 2007. The figures top out at 84, 442 in the fiscal year 2002 and were at their lowest numerical figure during the fiscal year of 2005, with a reported 75,428 cases (Bohlander 125). These are still a significant amount of cases considering that employment laws and regulations have been in place for many years. The EEOC should not bear all the responsibility in preventing employee and applicant discrimination cases. Leaders in all types of industries should work, train and ensure that regulations are followed. Laws that protect the Civil Rights of workers have been implemented for decades; The Equal Employment Opportunity Act was specifically created in order to prevent discrimination on the basis of race, and sex amongst other determining factors. It was created to reverse a long historical trend of sexual discrimination against women, and that of racial discrimination against minorities. According to the information provided by Bohlander, cases of discrimination based on sex and race presented the largest and most significant percentage every year from 2001 until 2007. This is something that must be addressed, many people erroneously believe applicant and employee discrimination based on sex and race is an archaic, prehistoric and rare occurrence, this does not appear to be the case.

Our contemporary multi-cultural experience can be felt and seen in all aspects of life, cities and states are more diverse than ever. Television shows, pop-culture, music, movies, sports and nearly all other public endeavors attempt to present an image that excludes minorities. Some of the most influential and powerful positions in politics and business are held now held by minorities. It is no longer uncommon to see minorities at the helm of important agencies or corporations, take our current president for example.

Taking this into account can provide a false sense of security when it comes to employment discrimination. Today minorities are receiving college degrees at a rate never before seen, more than half of all college students are now women. This gives people the sense that all is well and that there is no need to fear applicant and employee discrimination, which is not totally true. Walter Vertreace, a Human Resources Consultant from Philadelphia Pennsylvania is of the opinion that there is still much work to be done, in regards to preventing discrimination based on race and gender. He is the former president of the New York State Advisory Council on Employment Law, and has worked to ensure equal employment opportunities for over 30 years. Vertreace believes that discrimination based on race and gender is very much alive in America today. To evidence his opinion he cites the fact that The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the agency responsible for enforcing the federal anti-discrimination laws, has reported that the number of charges reported against private employers has increased by more than 13,000 (Vertreace 2). He also states that a more than a third of the cases reported to the EEOC, were presented on the basis that alleged race discrimination had occurred on the part of the employer.

Multicultural Diversity in the Workplace

As it relates to the hospitality industry it is imperative that human resources professionals need to work to uphold the law using all the tools and resources that are at their disposal. One of the intentions of the Equal Employment Opportunity Act is to support the noble and humanistic idea that all people have equal rights to seek out social opportunities in life, one of these very important opportunities is employment.

Abraham Pizam points out that in some instances equal employment opportunity can only be achieved, if groups that were "previously discriminated against, experience positive discrimination" (Pizam 211). The "positive discrimination that Pizam refers to is the use of Affirmative Action, which attempts to repair the imbalance of the existence of minorities and women in the workplace. Many companies, corporations and groups especially those that reside within the hospitality industry are now tied and dependent on a global economy. Hotels, restaurants, cruise ships, and airlines are all dependant on the global economy due to the diversity and multi-cultural make-up of their clientele. Pizam believes that in situations like this "effective diversity management is paramount for success. Moreover, ignorance can have significant costs, in both financial and human terms; this is a key issue for the hospitality industry" (Pizam 213). Pizam believes that this is a key issue because of the significant numbers of women and minorities working in the hospitality industry (Woods, 2002).

During the past two decades of the 1990's and the 2000's the racial, ethical and gender composition of the workplace and the educational systems has been rapidly changing. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is taking steps to ensure that diversity is strong within the workforce. According to Hansen Fay "the EEOC now reminds employers that they might be in violation of Title VII, if a statistically racial disparity results, from recruiting exclusively from predominantly White school or Black schools" (Fay 23). Now more than ever minorities account for a large percentage of these populations. Currently institutions of higher education, especially those that specialize in preparing students for careers in the hospitality industry are focusing on Running Head: Insert Here preparing them for a multicultural and diverse workforce. According to Matt A. Casado dealing correctly and appropriately with a diverse workforce is "a topic of paramount importance because of the continuing changes taking place in The United States' ethnic profile and because of the effects of globalization on business practices" (Casado p.2) The hospitality industry has for a long time had, and will most likely for a time to come, still have a high percentage of minorities working in those fields. Now students in higher education programs with aims to enter into management positions in those fields are also made up of large percentage of minorities. This is a positive development for both the hospitality industry and for minorities, given the diverse and multicultural nature of the business. This however, does not mean that all is fine and well, human resources professionals and managers in the hospitality industry must continue to work diligently to ensure that minorities are not discriminated against in any respect and that the regulations specified in the Equal Employment Opportunity Act are upheld. It is important to consider that minorities are diverse and different, a group of people may be considered minorities, but they may be composed of a wide ranging and diverse set of individuals from different races, genders, cultures, religions etc. So it is imperative that everyone understands that the EEOA was designed and created to protect individuals from the tyranny of those in powerful and influential positions. By respecting and upholding these law the chances of having a healthy, productive, effective and successful workplace increase especially if the workplace resides within the hospitality industry.

Sex discrimination

Similar to gender and race discrimination sexual harassment which is defined by The Civil Rights Acts of (1964 and 1991), is investigated and monitored by The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Also, like gender and race discrimination in the workplace, it is not an uncommon occurrence. Sexual harassment is a topic that is not comfortably and openly discussed as much as it should be, this is due to the perception that people have of it being a taboo subject. However, sexual harassment is an issue that must be addressed and taken very seriously, especially in the hospitality industry where significant amounts of females make up the workforce. According to the EEOC about 15,000 cases of sexual harassment are reported yearly (Katz). Christine Kane -- Urrabazo claims filed with the EEOC are not only a problem for the company as whole. She claims that what many managers and HR managers fail to realize that they hold the responsibility for the actions of their employees whether they are aware of them or not. This is why it is vital that human resource managers and professional familiarize themselves with the laws and regulations of the EEOA and also what specifically can be deemed sexual harassment. In any workplace employee satisfaction can be said to be determined by two different types of factors. Frederick Herzberg was known to have identified these two types of factors as (1) satisfiers and motivators and (2) dissatisfiers or hygiene factors (Herzberg1959), they are described in detail by Urrabazo in her publication on sexual harassment. Essentially what the first set of factors represents are internal elements that an employee can control or directly change and affect. The second sets of factors are those that an employee has little or no control over, like the atmosphere, environment and conditions of a workplace. Sexual harassment negatively