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Oracle Tips by Burleson |
Title VII
of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
This law prevents discriminationagainst employees on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or
national origin. Employers are subject to this law if they have at
least 15 employees for each working day in each of twenty or more
calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year.
Title VII
is applicable to private
employers, State and Local governments, and educational institutions.
In determining an employment relationship with any of these entities,
the courts look primarily to whether the individual in question
appears on the employer’s payroll.
Title VIII has anti-discriminationand anti-retaliation
provisions that make it unlawful
for an employer to discriminate or retaliate against any of its
employees for filing complaints of discrimination. According to Title
VIIof the Civil Rights Act Unlawful Employment Practices
Section, it is an unlawful employment practice for an employer or
employment agency to discriminate against individuals regarding hiring
and discharge processes in any of several categories including race,
color, religion, sex, national origin, compensation, terms,
conditions, etc.
When a charge is filed for an individual that
claims an unlawful employment practice such as discriminationhas occurred, the EEOCwill notify the employer of the charge within 10 days and
conduct an investigation. The notice includes the date, location, and
details of the alleged unlawful employment action as reported. The
EEOC may dismiss the charge after its investigation without proof of
reasonable cause. If the EEOC finds reason for the validity of the
charges, they will get involved to eliminate the unlawful employment
practice by voluntary means between the parties. If voluntary actions
are not successful, the EEOC may file a Federal lawsuit.
The plaintiff may file a private suit on his or
her own if the EEOCprovides a right-to-sue-notice. Mediation is another
option which may be taken through the EEOC to possibly resolve the
situation. In the midst of the EEOC’s activities, they may work with
State and Local Fair Employment Practices Agencies (FEPAs) responsible
for State and Local fair employment laws. There are several avenues
for discrimination
charges to be filed under Federal,
State, and Local laws by the EEOC and the FEPAs.
FAST FACT
In FY2002, 30 percent
of employers offered mediation in dispute resolution, and 83 percent
of those charging parties agreed to participate in the EEOC
mediation process.
- EEOC FY2002
Office of General Counsel Annual Report
Figures 5.1 through 5.7 display information on the
resolution of discrimination
charges by type, filed under Title VII of the
Civil Rights Act of 1964 during the
period of FY1992 – FY2002.
Figure 5.2 provides data on charge resolutions by
Settlements. These negotiated charges are settled with
benefits to the claimant based on the evidence. The settlement
agreement is reached with either the EEOCor a FEPA, or both.
Figure 5.3 charts the charge resolutions by
Withdrawals with Benefits. This category of charges
represents a withdrawal by the claimant upon receipt of the requested
benefits. The withdrawal may occur after a settlement or after the
guarantee of the requested benefits.
Resolution of charges by Administrative Closures
is portrayed in Figure 5.4 and is representative of closures for
administrative reasons such as:
-
No response from the claimant to
EEOCcommunications.
-
Failure to locate the claimant.
-
Other litigation establishes
precedent that nullifies the case.
-
Refusal by the claimant to
accept full relief.
-
No statutory jurisdiction for
the case.
-
Withdrawal of the charge by the
claimant without receipt of benefits or resolution of the case.
Statistics for charges resolved by No Reasonable
Cause are graphed in Figure 5.5. This resolution charge means that
there is no reasonable cause to believe that discrimination
has occurred as found by the EEOC. The claimant may, however, file
a private lawsuit.
has reasonable cause to believe that discriminationhas occurred. The EEOC commonly will pursue subsequent conciliation
efforts based on a determination of Reasonable Cause. Reasonable Cause
determinations for charge resolutions may be resolved, however, by
negotiated settlements, withdrawals with benefits, etc that are not
statistically recorded as conciliations (successful or unsuccessful).
Charge Resolutions data by Successful
Conciliations is depicted in Figure 5.7, signifying reasonable cause
determinations of discrimination that
result in successful conciliation.
Statistics for Unsuccessful Conciliations charge
resolutions is displayed in Figure 5.8, and indicates reasonable cause
determinations of discriminationhat
result in unsuccessful conciliation.
The charge resolution data presented in Figures
5.2 through 5.8 as relates to Title VIIof the Civil Rights Act of 1964provides some interesting trends. The resolutions by Settlements
graph shows an increase, indicating that more charging parties are
winning negotiated settlements with benefits. Apparently more
employers are not following the proper practices to avoid
discrimination
in employment termination and
other actions.
Administrative Closures trended downwards,
indicating that the charging parties were more adamant, cooperative,
and thorough about pressing their claims and following through.
The percentage of charge resolutions by Reasonable
Cause was on an upswing during the final years of the reporting
period. Again, employers are not learning from the past and not
consulting the proper professionals and attorneys to eliminate
discriminatory practices.
Another indicator of the trend towards the
increased success by charging parties in discriminatory litigation
such as wrongful discharge is the amount of monetary benefits
received. Figure 5.9 highlights a nearly threefold increase in the
monetary benefits received by the charging parties over the period of
data collection.
Title VII
and the Americans with
Disabilities Act(ADA
) require employers to retain
records that may determine if unlawful practices are occurring in
employment. The records are those related to job applications, offers
of employment, demotion, promotion, layoff, termination, transfer,
reasonable accommodation, and compensation. These records must be
retained by the employer for minimum of one year from the date of
inception. In the event that charges are filed against the employer
with a State agency or the EEOC
all records related to the claim must be retained until the end of the
case.
The above book excerpt is from:
You're Fired!
Firing Computer Professionals
The IT
manager Guide for Terminating "With Cause"
ISBN 0-9744486-4-8
Robert Papaj
http://www.rampant-books.com/book_2005_1_firing.htm |
