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by Joseph Cooper Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 forbids discrimination on the basis of national origin in any aspect of employment, including hiring, firing, and job assignments. Because an employee’s accent or language skills are often associated with her national origin, employment decisions based on those characteristics are scrutinized closely by […]
Managers, managers, managers. Why can’t they just follow your policies and your practices? Wishful thinking. Here are seven deadly sins that your managers are probably committing right now, down the hall. Sin 1. Lust Sexual harassment continues to be a problem in the workplace. And it’s often worse when it’s a manager and a subordinate. […]
by Rosemary B. Guiltinan The U.S. 1st Circuit Court of Appeals recently upheld a jury verdict in favor of an Egyptian-American Muslim employee of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) who claimed the BSA denied him career advancement opportunities based on his national origin and religion. The court upheld the verdict because the employer failed […]
Sin 1. Lust Sexual harassment continues to be a problem in the workplace. And it’s often worse when it’s a manager and a subordinate. Perhaps the most difficult challenge in training managers and supervisors about harassment is getting across the idea that what matters is the attitude of the receiver of the harassment, not the […]
Q: I own and operate a business in which physically demanding work is part of the employees’ daily activities. I recently hired several employees who I thought were qualified for the job. However, I quickly learned that they weren’t in good enough health to do what was required of them. This is causing a lot […]
For a week, the nation’s news reporters were captivated by a Florida preacher’s plans to burn the Quran on the anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks. Although he ultimately backed down, his campaign and the heated debates and protests over planned mosques near ground zero and in other parts of the country have drawn […]
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 allows employers on or near an Indian reservation to give preferential treatment to Indians living in the vicinity. But the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) takes the position that this provision doesn’t permit preference for members of a particular tribe. In the continuing saga of a […]
by Sam R. Fulkerson The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced in January that 93,277 workplace discrimination charges were filed nationwide during 2009 — the second-highest level ever — and monetary relief obtained for victims totaled more than $376 million. The 2009 data show that private-sector job bias charges alleging discrimination based on disability, religion, […]
You have several employees you’ve caught red-handed violating a company rule that your employee manual says may justify termination for a first offense. When questioned, one admits to the wrongdoing; the others deny it. Can you fire the employees who lied but retain the other employee with a lesser disciplinary measure? According to a recent […]
Here’s the scenario: As the human resources director for your company, you’re asked to sit in on the selection process for your company’s next CEO. After an intense screening process, you have three candidates to be the next leader of your company — a white male in his early 70s, a male in his 40s […]