HRCI PHR – Workplace Planning and Employment – Employment Legislation

1. Employment legislation and compliance (1)

We are going to look at a few different categories of U. S. Federal laws and regulations. We will look at federal legislation that protects employee rights, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 64 and the 90 91 Amendment, the Age Discrimination Employment Act, or ADEA. The Pregnancy Discrimination Act, or PDA. The Americans with Disabilities Act, which is the Ada. And the Amendment Act of 2008, and the Genetic Information Nondisclosure Act, or commonly known as Gina. We will also look at affirmative action and antidiscrimination legislation, which will include the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act, Jobs for Vets, and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

And finally, other legislation will include the Immigration and Nationality Act, immigration Reform and Control Act, workers Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, and the Uniformed Services, Employment and Reemployment Act. Where some of the legislation that we will look at is extremely important in the exam, others will be covered quickly and carry less weight.

The Civil Rights Act of 164, which includes Title VII, was the first major piece of federal legislation to prohibit discrimination in all terms and conditions of employment based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin. It is important to note that key amendments expanded the definition of key terms like sex. For example, here we have classification of people as male or female, or the biological and physiological characteristics that define men and women.

Now we have gender, which has replaced sex in recent amendments, socially construed roles, behaviors, activities and attributes that a given society considers appropriate for men and women and also the perception by others of a person’s appearance, behaviors or physical characteristics. Gender also includes transgender if birth assigned sex and internal sense of gender identity don’t match or the individual’s tendencies vary from culturally conventional gender role. National origin has been expanded to include a country of once birth or of one’s ancestors birth, even if those no longer exist, it may be interchange with ethnicity, although ethnic group can refer to a religion or color as well as the country of your ancestors.

2. Employment legislation and compliance (2)

It is important for you to understand the general provisions of the Title Seven. First of all, it covers employers with 15 or more employees. That’s the rule of thumb. But to explain how it actually works, we have 15 or more employees within a 20 week period in the preceding calendar year or current calendar year. It prohibits discrimination against protected classes, makes it unlawful to deny job opportunities, training and career progression to individuals in those protected classes, and, as amended, prohibits discrimination based on pregnancy, childbirth or related conditions. It also prohibits sexual harassment and discrimination in compensation practices. Now, there are some exceptions to those general provisions of the Title VII.

Those are work-related requirements. For example, firefighter needs to be able to carry a heavy load of dead weight up and down a ladder. Regardless you are a man or a woman. If you can’t meet those requirements, then you can’t get the job as a firefighter. Also, bona fide occupational qualifications, for example, a swimsuit manufacturer may be selling swimsuits to young people, and so bona fide occupational qualification would be to be young, attractive person to model the swimsuits. Or a bona fide seniority system. Remember, it is not a seniority system that put in place. In order to qualify for the exemption, it has to be one that’s ongoing and has been in practice for some time the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972. This one is created or created the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which enforces the Equal Employment Opportunity Act laws. It also includes record keeping requirements for employers, whistleblower protection and an annual reporting requirement. The Equal Employment Opportunity also recognizes two categories of discrimination disparate treatment, which is treating protected classes differently than other employees or evaluating them by different standards or adverse impact, which is applying rules that have a negative effect on protected classes to all employees. Next? The Civil Rights Act of 1991.

This allows for jury trials for a plaintiff seeking compensatory damages, which are awarded to make an injured person whole. It added punitive damages, which are means to punish the offending party. Also worth noting under the federal law, you are not able to collect punitive damages from a governmental unit or agency. The amount of compensatory damages and punitive damages is limited based on the size of the employers. Employers of 15 to 100 employees is capped at $50,000. Employers of 101 to 200 employees capped at $100,000. Employers of 201 to 500 employees kept at $200,000 and employers of 501 or more employees kept at $300,000. You.

3. Employment legislation and compliance (3)

The Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 78 covers employers with 15 or more employees, as does the general equal employment opportunity loss. It is illegal to refuse to hire or to fire a woman because she’s pregnant. It is also illegal to force any pregnant woman to leave work if she is ready, willing, and able to do the job. Employers are required to treat pregnancy like any other temporary disability. The Age Discrimination and Employment Act of 1967 covers employers with 20 or more employees and unions with 25 or more members. And that’s a key point to remember, because it’s a little bit different than our general equal employment opportunity loss of 15 employees. It prohibits discrimination against individuals like me, age 40 and over. It is also illegal for employers to require mandatory retirement except under certain very specific circumstances, and also illegal to limit an employee status due to age. Next, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act again discovers employers with 15 or more employees and prohibits employment discrimination based on genetic information.

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the Amendment Act of 2008 made some major changes to the American with Disabilities Act. The American with Disabilities Act created rights for individuals with disabilities. It also prohibits discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities. And remember, the key word in there is qualified. It also applies to employers with 15 or more employees and requires employers to make reasonable accommodations unless undue hardship can be shown. Now, let’s take a second to look at two parts of that sentence. First, reasonable accommodation. A reasonable accommodation may be to modify a part of the job. It may be to modify the hours of the position. But it’s a reasonable accommodation. It’s something that the employer can reasonably do. Undue hardship, on the other hand, is extremely difficult to show, and it’s different from employee as the employer. So it is a case by case situation.

4. Employment legislation and compliance (4)

The Americans with Disabilities Act defines an individual with a disability as having an impairment limiting one or more major life activities, having a record of such an impairment, or being regarded as having such an impairment. It defines essential functions as primary duties a qualified person must perform with or without accommodation, and we talked about reasonable accommodation earlier. It defines reasonable accommodation as modifying or adjusting a job application, process, work environment, or circumstances under which a job is normally done and an individual does not need to be employed in one or more major life activities to be covered. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, an individual need only be impaired in one major life activity to be covered. Some disabilities may be corrected through the use of medical devices or medications for the purposes of the Americans with Disabilities Act, however, employees can’t consider these corrected measures in determining whether an impairment substantially limits a major life activity.

So if someone is on medication and that medication controls their disability, that’s not something you can consider for Americans with Disabilities Act coverage. The only exception to this rule is for vision impairment, and that vision impairment that’s corrected through ordinary eyeglasses and contact lenses. The Americans with Disabilities Act may protect a current or recovering alcoholic who can meet its definition of disabled. However, employers may prohibit the use of alcohol while on the job and disciplined employees, including those who would be considered alcoholics, for violation on this policy or for other behavior that adversely impacts job performance or conduct. The Americans with Disabilities Act does not protect those who currently engage in illegal drug use. However, protection may be given to qualified individuals who are successfully rehabilitated or who are participating in supervised rehabilitation programs, no longer engaging such illegal drug use.

5. Employment legislation and compliance (5)

Now, the American with Disabilities Act Amendment Act of 2008 expands on the interpretation of a disability contained in the first version. It is now much easier to meet the definition of a disability, and it provides for nine rules of construction. It also also expands the list of major life activities which can be affected, and it identifies a number of impairments that will virtually always meet the definition of disability. These changes have made it easier for people to claim they are disabled and therefore require special treatment. Virtually any type of impairment can be claimed as a disability. Now, as a result of these changes, HR professionals need to pay very close attention to the Americans with Disabilities Act and the updated version. Related claims. The Americans with Disabilities Act and the modification of the Amendments Act of 2008 has outlined nine rules of construction which are designed to help employers determine if a disability is covered by the Ada understand the consequences of new regulations, help guide decision making regarding Americans with Disabilities Act coverage and reasonable accommodations, and clarify the elimination of mitigating measures.

Remember, those are the medications or other apparatus that can help a person overcome a disability. The nine rules of construction are as follows first, the term substantial limitation should be construed broadly in favor of expanding coverage, expanding the definition of a disability, and expanding who is covered under the Americans with Disability Act. Second, impairment does not have to prevent or severely or significantly restrict performance of a major life activity to be considered substantially limiting. Third, extensive analysis of the potential disability is not required. The key focus should be on the individual’s qualifications for the job and need for a reasonable accommodation or whether discrimination has occurred. Fourth, individualized assessment is still required. But remember, substantially limit is lower standard than under the Americans with Disability Act.

Fifth, assessing ability to perform major life activities as compared to most people usually will not require scientific, medical, or statistical evidence, although using this kind of evidence is allowed. Six improving effects of mitigating measures, again, such as medications or other apparatus other than ordinary eyeglasses or contact lenses, should not be considered. Seven, impairments that are episodic or in remission can be limiting if they would be when they were active in our evidence of a disability. Examples there are cancer or other episodic types of disabilities. Eight individuals only have to be substantially limited in one major life activity. And nine, there are now no duration limits. Impairments lasting less than six months may be considered substantially limiting and therefore covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

6. Employment legislation and compliance (6)

Now, before we move on, we are going to pause for a moment so that you can answer some review questions. Match each scenario to the law or regulation that protects against its occurrence. Joe and these are the options a 62 year old factory worker is due to retire in three years, so his manager thinks it apt to lay him off to cut cost. Kids received the termination of notice from his employer after returning from the three month leave he took for training. Emily, who is hearing impaired, isn’t called for a second interview for the position of fact checker with the local newspaper, although she is extremely qualified. And the manager requested Judith, an Aria marketing supervisor, to take an early leave considering her incapable of fulfilling the travel requirements due to pregnancy. And these are the targets. Age Discrimination in Employment Act uniform Services Employment and Re Employment Act americans with Disabilities Act and Pregnancy Discrimination Act this is the answer for you to compare.

The Age Discrimination in Employment Act protects workers against unfair treatment based on advanced age. The Uniform Services, Employment and Reemployment Act protects the rights of reservists called to active duty in the armed Forces. The Americans with Disabilities Act provides kilos and regulations that make it unlawful to discriminate in employment against a qualified individual with a disability. The Pregnancy Discrimination Act makes it illegal to force a pregnant woman to leave work if she is ready, willing and able to work. Judith gives no indication to her manager that she cannot fulfill her job. Now, match the applicable law or regulation to each situation. More than one situation may be covered by the same law in some situation may not be covered by other law. Here we have the options. Title seven of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and as amended in 1991 and Immigration Reform and Control Act. Here we have the targets.

A manager treats someone unfavorably because of employees connection with a race based organization. An employee is teased about his skin color so frequently that it creates a hostile work environment and results in the victim being demoted. A large company has a rule that only English may be spoken in the workplace, even though French in English is not necessary to perform all the organization’s jobs effectively. An organization fails to give an employee a yearly raise, which has been a regular occurrence for this employee in the past. And this is the answer. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and as amended in 1991, prohibits discrimination in employment based on race, color and national origin, sex and religion.

This includes discrimination in hiring, compensation, treatment and firing of workers. The Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and as amended in 1991, prohibits against discrimination in employment based on race, color, national origin, sex and religion. It also includes a prohibition against working environments that are hostile for any of the protected classes of people. The immigration Reform and Control Act prohibits an employer with 15 or more employees from using an employment policy that applies to everyone regardless of national region, if it has a negative impact on people of a certain national region and is not job related. Pay increases are not governed by law. Companies are not required to give increases unless employees have a contract that indicates this. The company has an employee policy that dictates this, or a labor union collectively bargains an increase for employees. Mention the laws or regulations to the situations they apply to. More than one situation may be covered by the same law, and some situations may not be covered by a law. Here we have the options. Genetic Information Nondisclosure Act and Americans with Disabilities Act.

Here we have the targets. An employer decides against hiring someone after reviewing her medical history. Responses of an application form believing this individual was more likely to take sick leave than other applicants. An applicant is denied employment after revealing in a second interview a genetic predisposition to diabetes. An employer fires an individual after discovering the employee had a history of illegal drug use, and an employee is denied promotion to a senior position due to a poor performance evaluation. And this is the answer for you to compare. Family medical history is included in the definition of genetic information because it is often used to determine whether someone has an increased risk of getting a condition in the future.

The employee is not allowed to discriminate based on future possibilities because it is not relevant to the individual’s current ability to perform. The law prohibits discrimination on the basis of genetic information when it comes to any aspect of employment. An employer is not allowed to use genetic information to make a decision because genetic information is not relevant to an individual’s current ability to work. The Americans with Disabilities Act definition of disability covers people who have history of addiction to illegal drugs. So so long as they are not currently using drugs, as long as the decision is not discriminatory in nature, denying an employee promotion or advancement is not illegal.

7. Affirmative Action Planning and Equal Employment Opportunity (1)

Affirmative action planning and equal employment opportunity. Employers must make efforts to increase the presence of women, minorities, covered veterans and disabled individuals in the workplace. In the second topic, Affirmative Action Planning and Equal Employment Opportunity, we will examine the development, implementation and evaluation of an affirmative action plan according to the requirements. When we conclude this topic, you should be able to recognize these key aspects. Many employers are required to file workforce information with the law, so it’s vital to keep accurate records in order to prove the company is compliant with those regulations. Some things that are required include the annual equal employment opportunity report. This is required for employers with 100 or more employees or federal contractors with at least 50 employees and government contracts of at least $50,000. Again, this is known as the 50 50 Rule. Those reports are due by September 30 each year, and Equal Employment Opportunity Regulations also require posters and officially approved notices to be prominently displayed in each of the covered workplaces. Under the Equal Employment Opportunity Regulations, employers must make efforts to increase the presence of women, minorities, covered veterans and disabled individuals in the workplace, and they should take positive steps to correct their underutilization. The affirmative action process is encapsulated in the development of an affirmative action plan. Formal written affirmative action plans are required of employers with 50 or more employees and $50,000 or more in government contract. This is commonly referred to as, again, the 50 50 Rule.

8. Affirmative Action Planning and Equal Employment Opportunity (2)

Here we are going to look at the statistical components of the affirmative action plans. We have four components. First, the organizational profile. Next is job group analysis. It is followed by the workforce analysis and then finally the availability analyze it. Each one of these is very important and key component of an affirmative action plan. In this video we are going to look at the narrative components of the affirmative action plan.

Here we are going to look at placement goals, action oriented programs, designation of responsibility and the identification of problem areas. And finally a description of the internal audit and reporting system. Together these areas describe the company’s policies, programs and procedures to ensure equal employment opportunity to everyone that discussed the components of the affirmative action plan and the good faith efforts being made to eliminate any problems that are identified. Now we’re going to dig a little bit deeper into the affirmative action plan and here we find the organizational profile. This depicts staffing patterns to determine if barriers to equal employment opportunity exist in the organization.

Next is the job group analysis. Here we list all the job titles in each job group and show jobs by function, not departmentally. Next is the workforce analyzes. Here we list job titles ranked from the lowest to highest paid within an organizational unit. The availability analysis requires that organizations consider internal and external availability to determine the theoretical availability of women and minorities. The organization compares the percentage of women and minorities in each group with a theoretical availability. A variety of statistical methods can be used for calculating the comparison to any different rule, the 80% or five or out of fifth rule, or the two standard deviation analysis. However, I will say that the Office of Federal Contract Compliance does prefer that businesses use the two standard deviations analyzes and therefore you should look out for debt on the exam. And then finally, placement goals are set when a percentage of minorities or women is less than reasonably accepted given their availability percentage.

9. Affirmative Action Planning and Equal Employment Opportunity (3)

Unfortunately, the authorities doesn’t simply believe every employer is in compliance. Like many other federal agencies, they perform employer audits to ensure compliance. Now, there are four basic types of audits. The compliance review is one type. This consists of a comprehensive analysis and evaluation of the hiring and employment practices of an employer, the written affirmative action plan and the results of the affirmative action effort. This is the most comprehensive of the various audits. Another compliance review is a desk audit. This may proceed to an onsite review to further analyze areas, for example, unresolved problem areas or supporting documentation, followed by an offsite analysis of information gathered when it is necessary.

A compliance check. This consists of an abbreviated review of the employer’s record keeping practices to ensure compliance with the affirmative action regulations. And it may be followed by a more expensive evaluation if necessary. A focus Review this consists of an onsite review focused on or restricted to one or more components of the employer’s organization, employment practices or policy implementation. And then finally, an off site review. This consists of analyzing and evaluation of the affirmative action plan or any part of the plan and supporting documentation and other documents related to the employer’s personal policies and employment actions.

This is done as typically at the office of the authorities, controlling this with documents provided by the employer. Now remember, if the audit reveals compliance issues, a written compliance notice could be issued. For more serious problems, a formal agreement may be required which spells out exactly what the company must do to be in compliance. And they will give you timeline to achieve compliance. In these cases, you can expect additional followup visits from the OFCCP and Department of Labor.

10. Affirmative Action Planning and Equal Employment Opportunity (4)

Corporate management compliance evaluations are designed to help mitigate the glass ceiling effect. This is where qualified women, minorities and the disabled are prevented from getting senior level executive positions by what we see as an invisible barrier. Corporate management compliance evaluation focuses on the employer’s efforts to ensure opportunities exist at all levels of the organization and whether a fair selection process exists whenever an employee is considered. Organizations that are not required to develop and implement affirmative action plans can voluntarily implement their own plans.

However, for a voluntary program to be credible, it needs to be developed along the same lines as a mandated plan. There will always be fairness issue and to deal with, especially considered the equal employment opportunity efforts. And affirmative action plans don’t cover every possible minority, but companies focused on fairness and equal opportunity are growing in number every day. Some people view efforts to create equal opportunities as reverse discrimination, and it’s often difficult to show a reverse discrimination in employment decisions, especially since the courts have long held temporary preference to protected classes is allowed under the law. Looking at the quota system is another area which is especially controversial. A quota involves hiring and promoting a set number of people based on their inclusion in a protected class.

Under a quota system, the number of new hires and promotions must be met at all cost. The Supreme Court of US has ruled that quota systems are not allowed under the law. Merit hiring is just that hiring is strictly based on the individual’s merits. Bona fide occupational qualifications are considered. A major and sometimes deciding factor in some hiring decisions, as discussed previously, is if bona fide occupational qualifications exist, such as hiring a thin, young, attractive woman to model basing suits targeting other demographics, then discrimination is allowed.

Even the best employers would be challenged on their employment practices from time to time, so employers often carry employment practices. Liability Insurance employment practices liability insurance cover businesses against claims by employees if the rights have been violated. Policies cover legal costs whether the company wins or loses. However, policies usually do not cover punitive damages or civil and or criminal penalties and liabilities covered by other insurances, such as workers compensation, are not covered. It is important to remember that employers may have a duty to notify the insurance company immediately when they receive any indication of a potential issue, even if no claim has been filed. If not, the insurance may not cover the incident. You.

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