NCJ Number
83633
Date Published
Unknown
Length
0 pages
Annotation
The director of Federal liaison with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) describes the historical evolution of the public's and Government's perception of discrimination, based on criteria developed by the Supreme Court over the years to determine employment discrimination.
Abstract
In the early 1960's, the Court viewed discrimination as a series of isolated events of ill-will, founded on evil motivation and as a sign of unequal treatment. Reflecting these decisions, Congress gave the EEOC a voluntary compliance mechanism, not an enforcement tool, to use in discrimination cases. However, in the Griggs case of 1972 the Supreme Court developed a third test for discrimination that was based on the statistical impact of particular employment practices/systems operate to exclude certain people (as determined by statistical analyses), these practices are discriminatory. The employers have the burden of proof to show that their employment tests are legal, that they reflect a statistical relationship between how well employees perform on the tests and how well they perform on the job. The tests must be job-related, and the employers must demonstrate that alternative employment procedures are unavailable. Reflecting the Griggs decision, Congress gave EEOC enforcement power in discrimination cases and extended the agency's jurisdiction over State and local government cases. To remedy illegal employment systems, the courts have suggested that businesses devise new systems that operate to include minorities, that businesses provide relief/back pay for persons who were discriminated against, and that numerical remedies (quotas) be established. A question and answer session concludes the film.