WORKPLACE DIVERSITY,

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT
OPPORTUNITY AND
AFFIRMATIVE ACTION

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Diversity and Diversity Management

Diversity – any perceived

difference among people: age, race,
religion, functional specialty,
profession, sexual orientation,
geographic origin, lifestyle, tenure
with the organization, or position,
and any other perceived difference.

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 Diversity Management
Ensuring that factors are in place
to provide for and encourage the
continued development of a
diverse workforce by melding these
actual and perceived differences
among workers to achieve
maximum productivity

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Managing the Diverse Workforce:
Various Components
 Single Parents &  Persons with
Working Mothers Disabilities
 Women in Business  Immigrants
 Dual Career  Young Persons with
Families Limited
 Workers of Color Education/Skills
 Older Workers  Educational Level of
Employees

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Equal Employment
Opportunity: And
Affirmative Action

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 Equal Employment
Opportunity: An Overview
 EEO has been modified since passage of
the Civil Rights Act in 1964.
 Congress has passed other legislation.
 Major Supreme Court decisions
interpreting the provisions were handed
down.
 Executive orders were signed into law.

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 U.S. Legal System

 Executive branch – President and

regulatory agencies
 Legislative branch – House of
Representatives and Senate
 Judicial branch – federal courts

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 Discrimination

 Giving unfair advantage or

disadvantage of members of one group
over members of another group

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Laws Affecting Equal
Employment
Opportunity

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Civil Rights Act of 1866

 Oldest federal legislation

affecting staffing
 Based on the Thirteenth
Amendment
 No statute of limitations
 Employment is a
contractual arrangement

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Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of
1964 -- Amended 1972
 Greatest impact on human resource
management
 Illegal for an employer to discriminate
 Fifteen or more employees
 Exceptions to Title VII
 Persons not covered by Title VII
 Created the Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission (EEOC)
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Illegal for an Employer to
Discriminate

 Race
 Color
 Sex
 Religion
 National origin

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Exceptions to Title VII

 Bona fide occupational

qualifications (BFOQs)
 Seniority and merit
systems
 Testing and
educational
requirements

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 Persons Not Covered
by Title VII

 Aliens not authorized to work in

the United States
 Members of the Communist party
 Homosexuals

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Sexual Harassment and Title VII

 Quid pro quo – benefit or punishment

is contingent on submitting to sexual
advances
 Hostile work environment – behavior in
workplace makes it difficult for
someone of a particular sex to work

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Age Discrimination in Employment Act
Of 1967--amended In 1978 & 1986
 Illegal to discriminate against anyone 40 years
or older
 Administered by EEOC
 Pertains to employers who have 20 or more
employees
 Provides for a trial by jury
 Possible criminal penalty
 Older Workers Benefit Protection Act (OWBPA)

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Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978
 Amendment to Title
VII of the Civil Rights
Act
 Pregnancy, childbirth,
or related medical
condition
 Benefits area also
covered

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 Immigration Act of 1990

 Revised U.S. policy on legal

immigration
 Increased levels of immigration

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Illegal Immigration Reform and
Immigrant Responsibility Act
of 1996

 Severe limitations for

violation of visas
 Three year ban
 Ten year ban

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Americans with Disabilities
Act (ADA)
 Prohibits discrimination against
qualified individuals with
disabilities
 Prohibits discrimination in all
employment practices

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Individual with a Disability
 A person who has, or is regarded as
having, a physical or mental impairment
 Substantially limits one or more major
life activities
 A record of such an impairment
 Regarded as having such an impairment

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 Civil Rights Act of 1991
 Provide appropriate remedies for intentional
discrimination and unlawful harassment
 Codify the concepts of business necessity
and job related
 Confirm authority and guidelines for finding
of disparate impacts under Title VII
 Respond to recent Supreme Court decisions

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Types of discrimination and how to
file suit
 Disparate treatment – intentional
 Plaintiff must show is member of
protected group, applied for and qualified
for job, rejected, position remained open
or was filled by person with similar
qualifications
 Defendant must produce
nondiscriminatory reason for rejection
 BFOQ

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Types of discrimination and how to
file suit
 Disparate impact – facially neutral device
leads to unintended advantage for one group
 Plaintiff must show questionable employment
practice disproportionately affects protected
group relative to majority group
 4/5s rule – 80% selection rate
 Standard deviation rule
 Defendant must show employment practice is
business necessity

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Glass Ceiling

Invisible barrier in
organizations that
prevents many women
and minorities from
achieving top-level
management positions

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Family Medical Leave Act (1993)

 Up to 12 weeks unpaid leave after

 Birth or adoption of child
 Care for seriously ill family member or self
 50 or more employees
 Provide same or similar job upon return
 Paid health care during leave

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Significant U.S. Supreme Court Decisions

 Griggs v Duke Power Company – job-

related business practice
 Albermarle Paper Company v Moody –
tests must be validated
 Phillips v Martin Marietta Corporation –
no women-only standards

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Enforcement of EEO
EEOC
OFCCP

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 Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission (EEOC)
 Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, as
amended, created the EEOC
 3 responsibilities
 Investigate and resolve
 Gather information (EEO1- forms)
 Issue guidelines
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 Steps in Handling a Discrimination Case
Charge Filed

Attempt at a No-Fault Settlement

Investigation by the EEOC

Attempt at Conciliation

Review Case for Litigation

Recommendation

Recommendation Against
Recommendation for
Litigation – Right to Sue Notice
Litigation – EEOC Initiates Action
Issued to Charging Party 30
Exceptions to Title VII Coverage
 Religious institutions, with respect to
employment of persons of a specific
religion in any of the institution’s
activities
 Aliens
 Member of the Communist Party

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Uniform Guidelines on Employee
Selection Procedures
Assists employers, labor
organizations, employment
agencies, and licensing and
certification boards in
complying with federal
prohibitions against
employment practices that
discriminate on basis of race,
color, religion, gender, and
national origin.
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 Adopted By

 EEOC
 Civil Service Commission
 Department of Justice
 Department of Labor

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 Additional Guidelines

 Interpretative Guidelines on Sexual

Harassment
 Guidelines on Discrimination
Because of National Origin
 Guidelines on Discrimination
Because of Religion

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Affirmative Action Programs

An approach developed by
organizations with government
contracts to demonstrate that
workers are employed in
proportion to their representation
in the firm's relevant labor market

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Legal status of affirmative action
 U.S. Forestworkers v. Weber
 Voluntary plan must fix old patters of
discrimination and be temporary
 Johnson v. Santa Clara Transport Agency
 Affirmative action plan should address
“manifest imbalance” in employment practices
 2003 Michigan State cases
 Race may be used as admission
consideration sometimes

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