DISCRIMINATION

Gender/Sex Discrimination in the Workplace Instructions

Gender/Sex Discrimination in the Workplace Instructions

Introduction

Before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed an employer could reject a job applicant because of his or her race, religion, sex or national origin. An employer could turn down an employee for a promotion, decide not to give him or her a particular assignment or in some other way discriminate against that person because he or she was black or white, Jewish, Muslim or Christian, a man or a woman or Italian, German or Swedish. And it would all be legal (Jennings, 2009).

What is Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964?

When Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed, employment discrimination on the basis of one's race, religion, sex, national origin and color became illegal. This law protects employees of a company as well as job applicants(www.nytimes.com). All companies with 15 or more employees are required to adhere to the rules set forth by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The law also established the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) which continues to enforce this and other laws that protect us against employment discrimination.

How Does Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 Protect You?

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects both employees and job applicants. Here are some ways in which it does that, according to the EEOC:

An employer can't make hiring decisions based on an applicant's color, race, religion, sex or national origin. An employer can't discriminate based on these factors when recruiting job candidates, advertising for a job or testing applicants.

An employer can't decide whether or not to promote a worker, or fire one, based on the employee's color, race, religion, sex or national origin. He or she can't use this information when classifying or assigning workers.

An employer can't use an employee's race, color, religion, sex or national origin to determine his or her pay, fringe benefits, retirement plans or disability leave.

An employer can't harass you because of your race, color, religion, sex or national origin.

Equal Pay Act

The EPA prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in the payment of wages or benefits, where men and women perform work of similar skill, effort, and responsibility for the same employer under similar working conditions(www.maldef.org).

Employers may not reduce wages of either sex to equalize pay between men and women.

A violation of the EPA may occur where a different wage was/is paid to a person who worked in the same job before or after an employee of the opposite sex.

A violation may also occur where a labor union causes the employer to violate the law.

Pregnancy Discrimination Act

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, prohibits workplace discrimination on the basis of pregnancy. The impetus for the act was a 1976 Supreme Court decision, General Electric v. Gilbert, in which the Court held that denial of benefits for pregnancy-related disability was not discrimination based on sex. This holding echoed past management decisions by which ...