Equal Employment Opportunity CommissionEssay Preview: Equal Employment Opportunity CommissionReport this essayChristopher CokerCleveland State UniversityPrinciples of Labor Management RelationsMLR 302Professor AmolshNovember 28, 2012The EEOCDiscrimination has been an issue in America since the beginning of America. Though since abolishing slavery and multiple civil rights acts have decrease discrimination in many places. Discrimination is still very alive in America today, especially in the American workforce. According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, discrimination is defined as “the act, practice, or an instance of discriminating categorically rather than individually” or the “prejudiced or prejudicial outlook, action, or treatment” (Merriam-Webster, 2012). There are many federal laws that were created to fight discrimination, including the Title VII of Civil Rights Act of 1964. Other laws that fight discrimination in the workplace are the Equal Pay Act of 1963, Age discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Sections 501 & 505), Title I & V of the American with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Civil Rights Act of 1991, and many more laws. These laws allow everyone in the workforce in both labor and management to have equal employment opportunity. These equal employment opportunity laws make it illegal for employers to discriminate against an employee or potential employee in certain workplaces. The government agency that was designed to enforce these laws was the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The EEOC was created by the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and they were given the responsibility to “promote equal opportunity in employment through administrative and judicial enforcement of the federal civil rights laws and through education and technical assistance” (EEOC.com). The EEOC is responsible for handling complaints about workplace discrimination. Workplace discrimination laws vary from state to state; however, federal laws take precedent over state law. Federal laws prohibit discrimination in employment for Age, Disability, National origin, Pregnancy, Race, Religion, Sex (or Gender), and Sexual Harassment. In addition to those areas the EEOC works with fair and equal pay for men and women and it works with retaliation from employers after filing with the EEOC.
President John F. Kennedy on March 6, 1961 signed Executive Order 10925, which required government contractors to “take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed and that employees are treated during employment without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin” (Exec. Order No. 10925, 1961). It established the Presidents Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity of which then Vice President Johnson was appointed to head. This was the driving force for starting the EEOC. It wasnt until a year after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that the EEOC was established. Its mandate then was specified under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA), the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, and the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (
The EEOC deals with all types of discrimination on all levels. Both potential and current employees of most private employers, state and local governments, educational institutions employment agencies and labor organizations are protected under federal law.
Race, Color, Religion, Gender, and National Origin is the most commonly known about type of discrimination. When then EEOC deals with discrimination of any kind it is in conflict of the civil rights act. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, prohibits discrimination in hiring, promotion, discharge, pay, fringe benefits, job training, classification, referral, and other aspects of employment, on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin.
Disability discrimination is a more recently brought about in the fight against discrimination. Disability is not limited to a physically handicap but includes mental and emotional handicaps (such as PTSD). The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended, protects qualified applicants and employees with disabilities from discrimination in hiring, promotion, discharge, pay, job training, fringe benefits, classification, referral, and other aspects of employment on the basis of disability. The law also requires that covered entities provide qualified applicants and employees with disabilities with reasonable accommodations that do not impose undue hardship.
Age discrimination is very vital in Labor Relations of any kind. The ADA was originally created for the protection of older employees and to keep them from being pushed out of their jobs they have been working for 20+ years for younger just as skilled work. More recently age discrimination has been used for younger employees who were not hired into a company due to being young. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, as amended, protects applicants and employees 40 years of age or older from discrimination on the basis of age in hiring, promotion, discharge, compensation, terms, conditions or privileges of employment.
Sex discrimination against women has been fought against for as long as civil rights. Sex discrimination is less heard of today but it still is a problem. Men and women on a national level still have unequal pay, but great strives have been and are currently being taken to end it. In addition to sex discrimination prohibited by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended (see above), the Equal Pay Act of 1963, as amended, prohibits sex discrimination in payment of wages to women and men performing substantially equal work in the same establishment. Sexual Harassment falls under the category of sex discrimination is the most common type of sex discrimination in the United States today. It is unlawful to harass a person (an applicant or employee) because of that persons sex. Harassment can include “sexual harassment”
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Title VII and the Title IX provisions, however, prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity which are fundamentally different from statutory law.
When there is a sex difference, sexual orientation and/or gender identity is protected. These are things that any individual may wish to be allowed to pursue at the same time, just as the legal process of marriage and the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, and even the Human Rights Act of 1964, as amended, protect the same rights and benefits as other people of all races, religions, and nationalities. A court of this United States can issue a preliminary finding that a person of a different sex is equal in a job application or even in a career. If the person has been able to show that his/her employment, race, ethnicity, national origin, gender identity, or other characteristics are not discriminatory, he/she is free to continue seeking employment at a later date if it satisfies a need. On what grounds does that require discrimination and what do other types of discrimination like harassment and intimidation also mean? The plaintiff is entitled to take action against the Board’s denial of his/her employer’s legal request for a preliminary finding of Title VII’s Title IX provisions (whether or not the Board ultimately determines that any sexual harassment allegation or related matters violate the Equal Pay Act). If the plaintiff fails to show that the Board is within its authority to require a preliminary finding of Title IX and other provisions that are applicable, he/she is denied his or her employment. The Board may deny a preliminary finding of Title IX if there is no one to act on behalf of him/her. The Board also may deny a preliminary finding of Title IX if it finds that there is a conflict of interest. Since Title VII and other laws prohibit sex discrimination by employment, some have stated that they are intended to provide a clear defense for a sex discrimination charge or an equal right to a job applicant to the accused employer. The only thing of consequence for those who wish to fight this case is equal protection under the law. In any event the Board’s decision to deny notice that this claim has been denied will be applied only in the case of sex discrimination claims. If sex discrimination is involved in a hiring proceeding, this may create a hardship for the prospective employer. The Board may ask the parties to that case if they are willing to work with the complainant in addition to sex. The defendant is entitled to a second opportunity to participate in the litigation in addition to a third party’s counsel. The Court cannot determine a defendant’s actual or potential liability for a discrimination claim by the hiring party directly. The Board must make the request by filing a final request with the Board’s Board of Equal Employment and Benefit Appeals (BETA) and by filing its case with the courts (the “Order”). The Board’s procedures are described below, and the procedures must be approved by the board’s legislative supervisor or his or her staff. For purposes of this policy it is understood that any action that is submitted to the Board should be under the jurisdiction