Week 3 – BACKGROUND
OMM 640
“Ethics is knowing the difference between what you have a right to do and what is right to do.”
Potter Stewart
Week Three’s Guidance
In my role of Sr. Director all of the next two chapters were critical elements to be managed in the Operations Group. As the manager in charge, you will be held accountable to the enforcing the rules of law and saying that you did not know them will not decrease the Federal liability. These laws came about because there was a very strong social need of legislative action to counter some long term failures in the business environment.
1. Read the following chapters in your text, Ethics and Conduct in Business:
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1. Chapter 5: Ethical Decision Making and Ethical Leadership
2. Chapter 6: Individual Factors: Moral Philosophies and Values
Chapter 5 is primarily concerned with ethical arguments against discrimination in employment. The chapter presents the main anti-discrimination laws, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Discrimination in its many forms are explained, and suggestions are offered on how to avoid discrimination in the workplace. The chapter concludes with an explanation of affirmative action and an examination of the arguments for and against it.
What is Discrimination?
The term discrimination refers to a wrongful act that deprives a person of some public benefit or opportunity, such as employment or education, due to that person’s membership in a group toward which there is substantial prejudice. Employment discrimination involves unequal treatment in personnel decisions, resulting from prejudice against a particular group. This treatment directly affects the employment status and/or terms and conditions of employment for such an individual.
Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. This act specifically addresses discrimination in employment. Section 703(a) makes it unlawful for an employer to refuse to hire or discharge an individual based upon his or her compensation or terms of employment. An employer is also prohibited from limiting, segregating or classifying employees and job applicants in any way that might deprive them of employment opportunities. Title VII defines race, color, religion, sex and national origin as protected classes. Congress subsequently extended the list of protected classes to include the aged (Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967), the handicapped (Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990), and pregnant women (Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978).
Employers can defend themselves against a charge of discrimination by arguing that race, sex, or some other characteristic is relevant to the job. Section 703(e) of Title VII makes an exception for discrimination based on sex, religion, or national origin when they are bona fide occupational qualifications (BFOQ), meaning that they are reasonably necessary to the normal operation of a particular business or enterprise. The courts interpret the BFOQ exception very narrowly so that “reasonably necessary” requires employers to show that the exclusion of members of a protected class is “absolutely essential” for the conduct of business and not merely useful. Race and color are never considered BFOQs, and sex is a BFOQ only under very limited circumstances.
Forms of Discrimination
Discrimination on the basis of sex.
Sex discrimination under Title VII is defined as discrimination based on whether a person is male or female. It does not relate to sexual orientation or marital status. Homosexuals are not a protected class under Title VII, though they are protected from discrimination by some local laws. Sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination. The Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 expanded Title VII protection by amending its phrase “because of sex” to include “pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.”
Religious discrimination.
Religious discrimination can involve disparate treatment against an employee because of his or her religious affiliation. But most religious discrimination in employment involves conflicts between the religious beliefs and practices of employees and workplace rules and routines. Employers are required only to provide reasonable accommodations for an employee’s religious practices would not result in undue hardship to his or her business or interfere with employee safety.
National origin discrimination.
National origin discrimination overlaps with discrimination based on race, color, and even religion, although it is conceptually distinct since an employer might exclude Mexicans but not other Hispanics. Qualifications that have disparate impact on nationality groups, such as being a U.S. citizen or having proficiency in English, are permitted under Title VII as long as they meet the business necessity test.
Age discrimination.
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 prohibits discrimination in employment against people over forty, unless age is a BFOQ or the company has a bona fide seniority system. Highly paid corporate executives, partners, public safety employees, and judges are among those excluded from protection under the law.
Discrimination against the handicapped.
The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 require employers to make reasonable accommodations to employ the handicapped without enduring undue hardship. Persons with disabilities are those with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activity, such as caring for one’s self, walking, hearing, talking, or seeing. The Americans with Disabilities Act includes alcoholism and HIV infection as disabilities.
Avoiding Discrimination by Objective Tests
Objective tests are tests that measure specific knowledge, skills, intelligence, and general aptitude for work. Objective tests are legally and ethically permissible if (a) they do not have a disparate impact and (b) they are validated, which is to say they have been proven to be reliable predictors of successful job performance. The Supreme Court held in the Clara Watson case that subjective evaluations, such as personal interviews, recommendations from superiors, rating scales, and experience requirements also must not have disparate impact and be validated. Among the biases to be avoided in subjective evaluations are: the halo effect, when a single trait exercises an inordinate influence on the evaluator; stereotyping, which occurs when assumptions about members of certain groups influence an evaluator; and the similar-to-me phenomenon, in which evaluators favor people who possess traits similar to them.
Multimedia
1. Cengage. (Producer). (n.d). Countrywide financial fraudFraud [Video File]. Retrieved from http://cengage.com/custom/static_content/OLC/business/1285616928_ashford_university/countrywide_financial_fraud_cc.html
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Recommended Resources
Articles
1. McNamara, C (n.d). Complete guide to ethics management: An ethics toolkit for managers. Retrieved from http://managementhelp.org/businessethics/ethics-guide.htm
Websites
1. Defense Industry Initiative (http://www.dii.org/)
