Human Resources must operate within a number of Federal and State laws and regulations. Each federal civil rights law is designed to protect specified individuals from employment bias by specified employers. These laws include the following –
Age Discrimination in Employment Act - Bars discrimination against persons aged 40 years or older; applies to employers with at least 20 employees, employment agencies, and labor organizations.
Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 — Prohibits employment discrimination against individuals with disabilities and requires public services and accommodations to be usable and accessible by such individuals; covers employers with 15 or more employees, employment agencies, labor organizations, joint labor-management committees, the states, and U.S. territories
Civil Rights Act of 1866 - Bars race discrimination in the making and enforcement of contracts; applies to public and private employers.
Civil Rights Act of 1871 - Bars individuals from violating the federal rights of others; applies to persons acting “under color of any” state or local law. This includes conduct by certain public officials and municipalities, but not states or persons or agencies deemed to be “arms of the state.”
Executive Order 11246 - Requires affirmative action to prevent discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion, color, or national origin; applies to all federal contracts and federally assisted construction contracts in excess of $10,000.
Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, As amended – Determines the guidelines for minimum wage, overtime pay, equal pay, record keeping exempt, nonexempt status, child labor standards etc. It is a federal law enacted by the United States Congress in 1938. This law is enforced by the U.S. Department of Labor.
Equal Pay Act - Bars gender-based wage bias; applies to wages paid to employees who are engaged in commerce, engaged in the production of goods for commerce, or employed in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce.
Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 — Requires employers with 50 or more workers to provide unpaid, job-protected leave of up to 12 weeks per year to care for a newborn or newly placed adopted or foster child; to care for a seriously ill child, spouse, or parent; or because of the employee's own illness. The law prohibits discrimination against employees who exercise their leave rights.
Immigration Reform and Control Act - Bars national origin or citizenship status discrimination; applies to employers with three or more employees.
Privacy Act of 1974 - The Privacy Act states no agency shall disclose any record which is contained in a system of records by any means of communication to any person, or to another agency, except pursuant to a written request by, or with the prior written consent of, the individual to whom the record pertains [subject to 12 exceptions].
Section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act — Requires each department, agency, and instrumentality in the executive branch of the federal government to establish an affirmative action plan for the employment of “qualified individuals with disabilities.”
Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act — Requires affirmative action to employ and promote qualified individuals with disabilities; applies to government contracts in excess of $10,000 that relate to personal property and non-personal services, including construction.
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act — Prohibits discrimination against “qualified individuals with disabilities” by programs or activities that receive federal funds.
Section 2012 [redesignated as Section 4212] of the Vietnam-Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act — Requires affirmative action in the hiring and promoting of special disabled veterans, Vietnam-era veterans, and veterans who served on active duty during a campaign for which a campaign badge has been authorized; applies to government contracts for at least $25,000 that relate to personal property and non-personal services, including construction.
Title VII - Bars employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, or national origin; applies to employers with 15 or more employees, employment agencies, and labor organizations.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 - Probably the best-known of the fair employment practice laws, Title VII prohibits discrimination in any aspect of employment, including “help wanted” advertising and pre-employment testing, on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. In 1978, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act amended Title VII to prohibit bias on the basis of pregnancy. Employers with 15 or more workers, labor unions, and employment agencies are covered by Title VII.
Title IX - Bars sex discrimination; applies to educational institutions, including any public or private school and any institution of higher education, such as vocational and professional schools.
