EEO Context of HR practice

1. EEO Context of HR practice EEO = equal employment opportunity Not really what it means though It means “Don’t discriminate on these particular things”

2. Early Context • Constitutional Republic • Constitution – Federal government regulates “commerce among the several states” • Also 1st, 4th, 5th, 11th amendments restrains federal government

3. Early Context – part 2 • Republic founded with emphasis on private property rights • “Employment-at-will” doctrine – a property owner may use her/his property as s/he sees fit • People who are employed in that context “serve at the will of the employer” – may be hired and/or fired for any reason, or no reason at all

4. Early Context – part 2 still • Employment at Will – reciprocal between employer and employee • Three erosions on Employment at will doctrine • Competitive market pressures • Written contracts voluntarily entered • Civil Rights Protections

5. Civil Right Acts • 1866, 1964 Civil Rights Acts • Early CRA became 13th , 14th amendments • Lack of social progress regarding integration in post-slavery era • 1964 CRA drives much of current practice

6. War-time social justice issues • Contributions by African heritage and female citizens to war efforts in WW-I and WW- II • Truman executive order after WW-II finally orders desegregation of US military • “Separate but equal” doctrine struck down in Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

7. Civil Rights Act 1964 • Title VII covers employment practices • Protected characteristics: race, color, religion, sex, national origin • Virtually every employment decision covered • Not all organizations covered – excluded are small employers (less than 15), Indian nations, religious organizations, political offices

8. Two pairs of Federal Laws • Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 • Older Workers Protection Act of 1990 • Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973 • Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990

9. Age Discrimination in Employment Act 1967 • Cover firms of 20 or more employees • Covers workers 40+ years old • Original upper limit of coverage (age 65) was phased out • No affirmative action requirement • Coverage for states was modified through case law

10. Americans with Disabilities Act 1990 • Affects many aspects of public life • Huge untapped pool of talented Americans • Unemployment rates 70+% • Defining “Disability” (firms 15+ employees covered) • Physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities • A record of such impairment • Being regarded as having such an impairment

11. ADA 1990 • Screening, with or without “Reasonable Accommodation” • Sexual orientation not part of law • AIDS-Related Cases • Obesity • Genetic Discrimination • Courts have affected state coverage here also • Courts have also narrowed disability definition

12. Two Book-end CRA cases • Griggs v Duke Power 1971 • Griggs and others sued for race discrimination • Case defined adverse impact • Case also defined shifting burden of proof • Use of statistical information to prove illegal discrimination

13. Second CRA bookend case • Wards Cove v Atonio 1989 • Atonio and others sued for race discrimination • Used statistical data to prove point • Court reversed standard, requiring more than statistical data to make prima facie case • Also reversed shifting burden of proof, requiring plaintiff to ‘prove’ guilt • Lead to CRA revisions in 1991