For this project, use the scenario below to model your affirmative action plan.
Wright Technologies is located in Raleigh, North Carolina. The company has received numerous complaints from employees stating that the company favored white men in promotions and hiring. Concerned that they were in violation of equal employment opportunity laws, Wright Technologies has asked the human resource department to develop and implement an affirmative action plan. The company would like to reflect the Raleigh community, whose demographics are shown in the table below. The city has a 1:1 ratio of males to females.
Category Percentage of Population
White
59
African American
26
Hispanic/Latino
12
Asian
3
Before you begin to develop your plan, use the questions below to review equal employment opportunity policies, business laws, and the principles of human resources.
1. What two things did Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibit?
2. What are the exceptions to the Equal Pay Act (EPA), which states men and women must be given equal pay for equal work?
3. How are the Pregnancy Discrimination Act and American with Disabilities Act similar? How are they different?
4. What are the differences among disparate treatment, disparate impact, and harassment?
5. What ethical considerations do human resource teams need to take into account when developing harassment or affirmation action policies?
6. What are the potential consequences of non-compliance with equal opportunity or affirmative action laws?
7. What are some examples of good practices that human resources teams can take to make sure they are meeting the equal opportunity laws?
8. How is equal opportunity different from affirmative action plans?
1. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibits both discrimination in employment based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, and also retaliation against employees who oppose such discrimination or participate in related proceedings.
2. Exceptions to the Equal Pay Act include: systems that reward seniority, merit, quality or quantity of production, or any other factor other than sex; different wages based on a bona fide seniority system; different wages based on a bona fide merit system; different wages based on a system that measures earnings by quantity or quality of production, sales, or revenue; and a differential based on any factor other than sex that has been demonstrated to be job-related and consistent with business necessity.
3. The Pregnancy Discrimination Act and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) are similar in that both prohibit discrimination against certain protected categories in employment. However, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act specifically prohibits discrimination based on pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, while the ADA prohibits discrimination based on disability. Additionally, the ADA requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities, whereas the Pregnancy Discrimination Act does not have a similar requirement.
4. Disparate treatment refers to intentional discrimination, where individuals are treated differently based on their protected characteristics. Disparate impact occurs when a policy or practice that appears to be neutral has a disproportionately negative impact on individuals of a particular protected class. Harassment refers to unwanted behavior directed towards an individual or group, based on their protected characteristics, that creates a hostile or offensive work environment.
5. When developing harassment or affirmative action policies, human resource teams need to consider ethical considerations such as promoting fairness, equity, and equal treatment of all employees. They should ensure that the policies are transparent, non-discriminatory, and promote diversity and inclusion. Respect for employee privacy, confidentiality, and due process should also be taken into account.
6. The potential consequences of non-compliance with equal opportunity or affirmative action laws include legal penalties, such as fines and judgments, reputation damage, loss of business opportunities, and negative impact on employee morale and productivity. Non-compliance can also lead to lawsuits, investigations, and audits by government agencies.
7. Examples of good practices that human resources teams can take to meet equal opportunity laws include implementing non-discriminatory hiring and promotion practices, conducting regular diversity and inclusion training, establishing transparent performance evaluation systems, having clear policies and procedures for addressing complaints and grievances, and fostering a culture of respect and inclusion.
8. Equal opportunity refers to the principle that all individuals should have an equal chance to compete for employment and advancement opportunities, without being discriminated against based on their protected characteristics. Affirmative action plans, on the other hand, involve proactive measures taken by employers to address historical imbalances and achieve greater diversity in the workforce. Affirmative action goes beyond equal opportunity by actively promoting and increasing representation of underrepresented groups through targeted recruitment, training, and outreach efforts.