Discrimination

• Decisions made on the basis of characteristics which are not relevant to the position,

• which result in harm suffered by persons – on the basis of membership in a

protected class--group which has historically been discriminated against.

Forms of Discrimination

• Intentional– Deliberate and conscious, based

on negative stereotypes about group

• Unconscious– Not deliberate, but unconsciously

based on negative stereotypes

Forms of Discrimination

• Individual– Committed by an individual or

group of individual either deliberately or unconsciously

• Institutional– The result of institutional

practices of an organization • .e.g., nomination by current

member, organizational culture, merit defined in terms of factors that are not equally represented in all affected groups.

Federal Discrimination Law Prohibits:

• Unfair treatment because of your race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information.

• Harassment by managers, co-workers, or others in your workplace, because of factors above.

• Denial of a reasonable workplace accommodation that you need because of your religious beliefs or disability.

• Retaliation because you complained about job discrimination, or assisted with a job discrimination investigation or lawsuit.

• http://www.eeoc.gov/employees/index.cfm

Federal Law

• Civil Rights Act of 1964, 1991 prohibits discrimination on the basis of – Race, color, religion, sex or national

origin

• Age Discrimination Act of 1967 prohibits discrimination on the basis of age (over 40)

• Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability.

Federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act (1978)

• women affected by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions shall be treated the same for all employment-related purposes, including receipt of benefits under fringe benefit programs, as other persons not so affected but similar in their ability or inability to work. http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/statutes/pregnancy.cfm

Evidence of Discrimination

• Statistical– Numerical analysis that suggests that

groups are treated or affected differently.

• Problem- one must rule out other explanations.

• Evidence showing deliberate intention in a particular case– Various documents, conversations,

compensation patterns etc. • Problem-this evidence is often not

available and this places a heavy burden on victims.

Problems proving a federal discrimination case

• Supreme Court has usually required plaintiffs to show deliberate discrimination-that the employer was consciously motivated by racial or other bias.

• Supreme Court has usually rejected cases where the plaintiff does not provide such evidence.

Problems proving a case

• Employers know the law and suppress evidence of disparate treatment.

• Bias is likely to be unconscious rather than deliberate and conscious.

California Law

• Prohibits harassment and discrimination on the basis of– Age (40 and over), ancestry,

color, creed, denial of Family and Medical Care Leave, disability, medical condition (cancer and genetic characteristics), national origin, marital status, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, and gender expression. http://www.dfeh.ca.gov/equalrights101.htm

Pregnancy Discrimination

• California Fair Employment and Housing Act – explicitly prohibits employers from

harassing, demoting, terminating, or otherwise discriminating against any employee for becoming pregnant, or for requesting or taking pregnancy leave.

• California Pregnancy Disability Leave Law ("PDLL") – requires California employers to

provide up to 4 months of leave for employees actually disabled by pregnancy or pregnancy-related conditions, even if the employer's policies do not grant employees suffering from other short-term disabilities a similar amount of leave.

Compliance

• Compliance consists of making sure your organization is not violating any laws or regulations

• Reasons for caring about compliance– Risk management

• Lawsuits– Penalties can include fines, bad

publicity, ongoing oversight, being cut off as government contractor

Inclusiveness

• Inclusiveness means going beyond mere compliance to creating a workplace that– Is open to all, – nurtures individual talent, – is harmonious,– is effective and cohesive.

Why value inclusiveness?

• It has good consequences.– It increases the pool of talented

people.– It is good for morale.– It improves interaction with

diverse stakeholders: e.g. suppliers, customers.

• It respects each person.

• It is the basis for a harmonious, caring organization.

Why value inclusiveness?

• It encourages virtuous action by – Allowing each person to take

responsibility– Encouraging people to treat each

other with kindness– Encouraging people to develop

pride in their accomplishments • rather than in their place in the

organization.

• It is fair.

Responding to Discrimination

• Compensation

• Punishment

• Prevention

Affirmative Action

• Action taken to compensate victims of discrimination.– victims must provide evidence of

discrimination• direct evidence vs. numerical

evidence

• Action taken to prevent future discrimination.– potential victims must be

identified– procedures to measure

effectiveness of actions.

Affirmative Action Plan

• Employers are required to develop and file AAP with U.S. and State governments, depending on number of employees.

• AAP typically includes– Workforce analysis

– Availability

– Identification of problems

– Solutions

– Strategy and structure for implementation

Summary

• Discrimination is illegal and risky.

• Compliance is everyone’s job.

• Inclusiveness is in everyone’s interest.

• Creating an inclusive workplace requires on-going efforts.