Employment & Discrimination Law

Businesses are subject to a variety of laws regarding hiring, promotion and firing practices at both the federal and state levels. Broadly, businesses are prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, sex or national origin. They also cannot unreasonably discriminate against the handicapped, nor against members of the reserve components of the armed forces.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 provides for broad prohibitions against discriminating against job applicants or employees on the basis of race, national origin, religion or sex. The law's reach is relatively broad, applying to all aspects of hiring, pay, benefits, access to job training opportunities and promotions. The law also prohibits employers from imposing ostensibly neutral workplace policies that have a disproportionate effect on members of a protected class. The law also protects employees who have discrimination complaints against retaliation by their employer.

Americans With Disabilities Act

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits most employers from discriminating against individuals with chronic health conditions or disabilities. The prohibition against discrimination is not absolute; the standard is that the prospective employee must be able to do the job with reasonable accommodation. The employer must provide that reasonable accommodation, unless doing so would be a significant hardship for the employer. The ADA also prohibits discrimination with regard to promotions, job training and compensation for those with disabilities.

Age Discrimination in Employment Act

The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 prohibits employers from discriminating against job applicants and employees over 40 years of age. The act applies to government agencies and employers with over 20 employees. In addition, the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act of 1990 prohibits employers from denying benefits to older workers

Uniformed Services Employment and Re-Employment Rights Act

The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) protects members of the reserve component of the United States Armed Forces against discrimination on the basis of their military obligation. Employers must grant leave to workers to serve weekend drills, annual training periods, additional training periods and deployments of up to five years. Employers must grant seniority benefits, including pay raises, promotions and benefit increases upon the service members' return from active duty as if they had never left.

References

• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission: Facts About Race/Color Discimination
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission: Facts About Age Discrimination
• U.S. Department of Labor: Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) Information
• U.S. Department of Justice Americans With Disabilities Act

Resources

• U.S. Department of Labor