Human resource management gaining a competitive advantage 2014 chapter 3

Chapter 03The Legal Environment: Equal Employment Opportunity and SafetyHuman Resource Management: Gaining a Competitive Advantage...  List major federal laws that require equal empl

Chapter 03

The Legal Environment:

Equal Employment Opportunity

and SafetyHuman Resource Management:

Gaining a Competitive Advantage

Learning Objectives

 Identify the three branches of government and the role each plays in influencing HRM legal

environment.

 List major federal laws that require equal

employment opportunity (EEO) and the protections provided by each of these laws.

 Discuss the roles, responsibilities, and requirements

of the federal agencies responsible for EEO laws.

 Identify four theories of discrimination under Title

VII of the Civil Rights Act and apply these theories to different discrimination situations.

Learning Objectives, cont.

Discuss the legal issues involved with

preferential treatment programs.

Identify behavior that constitutes sexual

harassment and list things than an

organization can do to eliminate or

minimize it.

Identify the major provisions of the

Occupational Safety and Health Act

(OSHA) (1970) and the rights of

U.S Legal System

Executive

Branch

Judicial Branch

Legislative

Branch

3 Branches

Equal Employment Opportunity

(EEO)

EEO– the government's attempt to ensure

that all individuals have an equal chance

for employment, regardless of race, color, religion, sex or national origin

Constitutional Amendments:

13th Amendment - abolished slavery

14th Amendment – provides equal

protection for all citizens and requires

due process in state action

Congressional Legislation

of 1967

Congressional Legislation

Act of 1974

According to EEOC, a disability is a

physical or mental impairment that

life activity;

impairment;

disability by an employer whether you

have one or not, usually in terms or

hiring, firing or demotion

Enforcement of EEO

Two agencies responsible for the enforcement

of these laws and executive orders:

Equal Employment Opportunity

Commission

3 major responsibilities of EEOC:

Office of Federal Contract

Compliance Programs (OFCCP)

Reasonable

Disparate

Treatment

Disparate Impact

Disparate Treatment

Disparate treatment exists when

individuals in similar situations are treated differently based upon race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, or disability

status

Bona fide occupational qualifications

(BFOQ)

UAW v Johnson Controls, Inc.

McDonnell Douglas Corp v Green

Bona Fide Occupational Qualification (BFOQ)

BFOQ is a a job qualification based on race,

sex, religion, etc that an employer asserts

is a necessary qualification for the job

Disparate Impact

Disparate impact occurs when a neutral

employment practice disproportionately

excludes a protected group from

employment opportunities

• Four-fifths rule

• Standard deviation rule

Wards Cove Packing Co v Antonio

Griggs v Duke Power

Reasonable Accommodation

Reasonable Accommodation - places a

special obligation on an employer to

affirmatively accommodate an individual’s

disability or religion

Religion and Accommodation

Disability and Accommodation

Retaliation for Participation and Opposition

Title VII states that employers cannot

retaliate against employees for either

"opposing" a perceived illegal employment practice or "participating in a proceeding”

related to an alleged illegal employment

practice

Employees do not have an unlimited right

to talk about how racist or sexist their

employers are

Diversity and EEO ISSUES

Sexual Harassment

Affirmative Action

and Reverse Discrimination

Outcomes of Americans

Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment -unwelcome sexual advances, requests

for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical contact of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when

1 Submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or

implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment,

2 Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an

individual is used as the basis of employment decisions

affecting such individual, or

3 Such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance or

creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working

environment.

2 Harassment must have been severe

3 The court must determine the liability of the

organization for actions of its employees

Preventative steps include development

of a policy statement, training, a reporting mechanism and disciplinary policy

Affirmative Action and Reverse Discrimination

Affirmative Action was conceived of

as a way of taking extra effort to attract and retain minority employees

action continues to evoke attention

Americans with Disabilities Act

(ADA) Outcomes

Under ADA, a firm must make "reasonable

accommodation" to a physically or mentally

disabled individual unless doing so would impose

"undue hardship.”

Consequences of ADA:

 Increased litigation

 Cases being filed do not reflect Congressional intent

 Act was passed to protect people with major

disabilities

 The law has not resulted in a major increase in the proportion of people with disabilities who are

working

Employee Safety

both federal and state

governments

Health Act (OSHA)

Employee Rights under OSHA

to hazards and given access to

accurate records regarding

exposures.

5 Have employer violations

posted at work-site.

OSHA Inspections Citations and Penalties

OSHA inspections are conducted by

compliance officers, specially trained

Department of Labor agents.

employer

Safety Awareness Programs

Safety Awareness Programs attempt to instill

symbolic and substantive changes to a safety

program.

3 Components of a Safety Awareness Program:

1 Identify and Communicate Job Hazards

 Job hazard analysis technique

 Technic of Operations Review (TOR)

2 Reinforce Safe Practices

3 Promote Safety Internationally

constraints imposed by the government

legal requirements and prohibitions to

manage their businesses in ways that are

financially and ethically sound, and in so

doing they will also create a competitive