Key Employment Laws: Protecting Workers' Rights

Prevents discrimination of the hiring, compensation, conditions, and privileges of employment by basing them on on race, religion, color, sex, or nationality Heart of Atlanta Motel INC., v. United States ensures every person is equal chance of getting hired based on their qualifications regardless of, sex race, color, religion, or national origin employers are required to post signs with the Title VII contents in company break-rooms

Equal Employment Opportunity Act

Prevents employers from discriminating against employees on the basis of age, race, sex, creed, religion, color, or national origin McDonnell Douglas

Corp. v. Green

Ensures that the Civil Rights Act is being followed and gives power to the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission Companies adopted practices that prevented discrimination in compliance with Equal Opportunity Employment Act.

Equal Pay Act mandates that men and women working in the same role within a company be given equal pay for equal work Schultz v. Wheaton Glass Co. 1970
Mandates that everyone is paid the equal wages for identical jobs regardless of their sex Merit based, knowledge based, and experience are criteria for pay rate rather than gender

Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967

Protects employees ages 40 to 65 from discrimination
Gomez v. Potter
The importance of the ADEA is that it protects the older employees from discrimination. Wal-Mart for example hires older people specifically for the use as door greeters

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990

Prohibits discrimination against an essentially qualified individual, and requires companies to accommodate individuals reasonably Tennessee v. Lane in 2004
The importance of this act is that it requires companies to make reasonable accommodations for disabled employees so they will be able to perform their job Companies accommodate employees with disabilities by using TTD, speaking technology, and elevators

Civil Rights Act of 1991

The updated version of this act nullified select supreme Court decisions and reinstates burden of proof by employer and allows for punitive and compensatory damages through jury trials Wards Cove Packing Co.

v. Atonio

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) of 1993

Permits employees in organizations of 50 or more workers to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for circumstances outlined in the act

The importance of this act is that it makes it easier to balance family, work and other obligations without fearing losing their jobs If you have a child, adopt a child, or if you yourself become sick or have a sick parent, child, or spouse you may be eligible to take unpaid time off to be with them without the job loss.

Privacy Act of 1974

protects certain federal government records pertaining to individuals. In particular, the Act covers systems of records that an agency maintains and retrieves by an individual's name or other personal identifier

Individuals have the right to look at their employee file to make sure that information is accurate

Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988

This act requires some federal contractors and all federal grantees agree that they will provide drug free workplaces as a precondition of receiving a contract or grant from the Federal Government Enacted by Congress as part of an anti-drug legislation in 1988 The importance of this act is that it ensures the safety of all employees by ensuring that no one will be working while under the influence of drugs Drug testing as part of an application process and if an employee is hurt on the job most companies require a drug test when they go to the hospital

Polygraph Protection Act of 1988

Prohibits employers to use polygraph tests in a job application process On June 27, 1988, Congress enacted the Employee Polygraph Protection Act 1 to regulate the use of lie detector devices in the workplace The importance of this act is that it protects employees from violating privacy issues by asking non job related It is unreasonable for employers to give potential employees polygraph test

Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) of 1988

Makes sure that employers give notification to employees about plant closings or lay-offs This became law without President Ronald Reagan’s signature through the use of veto-proof Democratic majority in Congress The importance of this law is to protect employees because of a shut down or layoff, requiring employees be given a 60-day notice ease the burden of losing their jobs, some companies give severance packages based on the employees years of service with the company