Labor and Employment Law Commons^™

Germany's Legal Protection For Women Workers Vis-À-Vis Illegal Employment Discrimination In The United States: A Comparative Perspective In Light Of Johnson Controls, Carol D. Rasnic

Michigan Journal of International Law

This article will review the major German laws affecting women in the workplace, including clarification of the rationales of the German Bundestag (parliament). Comparative remarks regarding U.S. law and an analysis of Johnson Controls will place the two bodies of law in juxtaposition. Finally, an explanatory historical overview will allow the reader to draw his or her own conclusions as to the preferred view of the legal status of the working woman.

Fertile Women May Now Apply: Fetal Protection Policies After Johnson Controls, Barbara Ruhe Grumet

RISK: Health, Safety & Environment (1990-2002)

In its recent interpretation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the U.S. Supreme Court leaves little room for permissible occupational sex discrimination. However, its decision has wider implications. Here, Professor Grumet takes a look at some of them from both a legal and a social perspective, including matters such as employees' reproductive freedom and employers' potential liability for a variety of possible injuries to employees' offspring.

Feminizing Unions: Challenging The Gendered Structure Of Wage Labor, Marion Crain

Michigan Law Review

In this article, I argue that labor unions can be an effective, central tool in a feminist agenda targeting the gendered structure of wage labor. Collective action is the most powerful and expedient route to female empowerment; further, it is the only feasible means of transforming our deeply gendered market and family structure. Others have laid the groundwork by showing how existing individual-model challenges have been unable to accomplish such broad-based reform. I begin where they leave off.

Employer Sanctions And Discrimination: The Case For Repeal Of The Employer Sanctions Provisions Of The Immigration Reform And Control Act Of 1986, Aaron Schwabach

Law Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Government And Union Democracy, Theodore J. St. Antoine

Articles

The desirability of union democracy is generally regarded today as a self-evident proposition. In this Symposium Clyde Summers treats it as a "fundamental premise." But there have always been reputable scholars who would support the thesis, in greater or lesser degree, that "democracy is as inappropriate within the international headquarters of the UAW as it is in the front office of General Motors."

Don't Throw The Price Waterhouse Baby Out With The Bath Water: Age Discrimination And The Direct Evidence/Mixed Motive Puzzle, Mary L. Beyer

Seattle University Law Review

This Comment examines why Washington should place a higher burden on employers in direct evidence and mixed motive age discrimination cases. Because Washington courts follow federal case law in interpreting state anti-discrimination legislation, Section II examines relevant federal statutes and the history of their interpretation by federal courts. Section III explores the courts' modification of the traditional federal approach found in direct evidence and mixed motive cases. Section IV discusses Washington's anti-discrimination statute and Washington's judicial interpretation of that statute. Section V demonstrates Washington's insufficient response to federal developments in direct evidence and mixed motive cases. Finally, Section VI identifies …

Inherently Discriminatory Conduct Revisited: Do We Know It When We See It?, Barbara J. Fick

Journal Articles

"This article traces the development of the inherently discriminatory doctrine, proposes some guidelines for determining when employer conduct falls under the rubric of the inherently discriminatory doctrine, and analyzes two cases dealing with employer use of temporary replacements during offensive lockouts in light of the proposed guidelines."

The Ultimate Injustice: When A Court Misstates The Facts, Anthony D'Amato

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

English-Only Rules And The Right To Speak One's Primary Language In The Workplace, Juan F. Perea

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Article analyzes the issues raised by English-only rules and the decisions discussing these rules. Part I reviews the leading cases on English-only rules. The Article then explores several issues that must be considered in deciding any English-only rule case under Title VII. Part II addresses whether speaking one's primary language should constitute a protected right as an aspect of national origin under Title VII. This Article argues that primary language should be protected under Title VII for several reasons: the courts and the EEOC construe the term "national origin" broadly; primary language constitutes a fundamental aspect of ethnicity and …

Challenging Discriminatory Guesswork: Does Impact Analysis Apply, Michael A. Middleton

Faculty Publications

This article initially examines the traditional theories of proof in Title VII cases. It then discusses approaches by lower courts in resolving the competing concerns raised in applying those traditional theories in challenges to subjective selection devices. This article next discusses the Supreme Court's resolution of the problem in Watson and suggests a workable alternative resolution that will not undermine the broad prophylactic purposes of Title VII.

Future Disabilities Under New York’S Human Rights Law, Andrea Lisa Leeb

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Watson V. Ft. Worth Bank And Trust: The Changing Face Of Disparate Impact, Linda H. Edwards

Scholarly Works

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 constitutes this country’s first serious commitment to eradicating the enormous economic disadvantages caused by hundreds of years of racial and gender-related prejudice. But there is also cause for concern. While members of once excluded groups have entered the mid-level workforce, most have not progressed to top-level positions. Perhaps not surprisingly, the elimination of barriers to mid-level employment has spotlighted the unique barriers to equal employment in top-level jobs. Title VII’s capacity to deal effectively with these barriers will be its major challenge for the next quarter-century. Its success will depend, in …

Improving Handicappers' Civil Rights In Michigan--Preventing Discrimination Through Accommodation, Aldebaran Bouse Enloe

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Part I of this Note explains the development of· the current state of handicappers' civil rights law in Michigan, beginning with legislative initiatives and progressing to administrative and judicial decisions. Part II analyzes traditional antidiscrimination theory and suggests how that theory can be adapted to handicappers. By examining hypothetical situations, Part III exposes the disparity between the current state of the law in Michigan and the proposed theoretical analysis and suggests amendments to the MHCRA to reconcile this disparity.

Prevention Of Antiunion Discrimination In The United States, Theodore J. St. Antoine

Articles

Nearly all rank-and-file employees in private businesses of any substantial size in the United States are protected by federal law against antiunion discrimination. The Railway Labor Act applies to the railroad and airline industries. The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) applies to all other businesses whose operations "affect [interstate] commerce" in almost any way. Supervisory and managerial personnel, domestic servants, and agricultural workers are excluded from this federal scheme. Separate federal law covers the employees of the federal government. About thirty of the fifty states have statutes ensuring the right to organize on the part of some or most of …

Preliminary Report On A Comparative Analysis Of The Underlying Dimensions Of Unemployment Among Blacks, Hispanics, And Whites In Boston, Jeremiah Cotton

William Monroe Trotter Institute Publications

There are four major objectives of this research. The first objective is to determine whether and to what extent differences in unemployment rates in Boston among black, Hispanic, and white workers are due to the following: (1) the differences in the percentage of individuals in each group who experience a spell of unemployment at one time or another during the year, that is the incidence of unemployment; or (2) the differences in the average number of spells of unemployment during the year, that is the frequency of unemployment; or (3) the differences in the average length of time a spell …

Mutable Characteristics And The Definition Of Discrimination Under Title Vii, Peter Brandon Bayer

Scholarly Works

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits racial, religious, gender, ethnic, and color discrimination in employment. In most instances the courts interpret the statute very broadly. However, a line of cases holds that discrimination predicated on a forbidden criterion coupled with a ‘mutable’—easily altered—characteristic does not constitute a violation of Title VII. This Article attempts to debunk the ‘mutable’ characteristic doctrine by discerning a general definition of discrimination under Title VII and applying that definition to demonstrate that mutability analysis contradicts the letter and spirit of the law.

The Metamorphosis Of Comparable Worth, Nancy E. Dowd

UF Law Faculty Publications

The concept of comparable worth has as its factual predicate two typical characteristics of women's employment: occupational concentration or segregation and significantly lower wages compared to those paid to men. What continues to be most troubling about this employment pattern is its stubborn persistence, despite the increased presence of women in the workforce and the existence for over two decades of legislation prohibiting sex discrimination in employment.

The concept of comparable worth has provoked an outpouring of emotional rhetoric and scholarly analysis debating the concept’s viability and desirability. Rather than add to that debate, Professor Dowd traces the evolution of …

An Observation About Comparable Worth, George Schatzki

Seattle University Law Review

The ultimate legal question is: Does Title VII incorporate the comparable worth doctrine? The courts are saying, "No." Their reasoning is, at best, unpersuasive. Indeed, often their reasoning is nothing more than mere conclusion. Given what I have described briefly as the legal arguments pro and con, one can easily understand that so long as Griggs remains a part of the Title VII scene, there is a rational but not compelling argument to incorporate comparable worth into the Act. How, then, does a court decide? The following discussion is offered not as an example of desirable or undesirable judicial analysis. …

Evaluation Of Subjective Selection Systems In Title Vii Employment Discrimination Cases: A Misuse Of Disparate Impact Analysis, Stacey B. Babson

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Fair Employement Of The Handicapped In Texas., Bennett L. Stahl

St. Mary's Law Journal

The Commission on Human Rights Act may help prevent discrimination against handicapped individuals and ensure they have adequate employment opportunities in Texas. Employment discrimination against handicapped individuals often happens because of unfair job qualifications, or fair qualifications they would be able to meet if employers made reasonable accommodations. Establishing legal mechanisms to ensure fair opportunity for handicapped citizens to obtain employment is a comparatively new goal of American jurisprudence. The Federal Rehabilitation Act in 1973 made significant progress in fair employment practices. Texas made more progress by establishing the Commission on Human Rights Act, which creates a commission in charge …

The Liability Of Third Parties Under Title Vii, Andrew O. Schiff

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Note considers the extent to which Title VII covers discrimination by third parties other than employment agencies and labor organizations. Part I analyzes the rationale for covering third parties, discussing Title VIl's language and the policies that Congress intended it to serve. Part II proposes a framework for analyzing the liability of third parties. Part III applies this framework to three instances where courts have disagreed about the liability of a particular third party: insurance companies' administration of employee benefits, state licensing agencies' licensing of individuals for various occupations, and hospitals' granting of staff privileges to doctors.

Yankees Out Of North America: Foreign Employer Job Discrimination Against American Citizens, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

This Note explores Title VII's relationship to the hiring practices of foreign employers. It focuses on Japanese employers, who might face the toughest Title VII challenge to a business and cultural familiarity or citizenship requirement. Part I sets out arguments for and against finding intentional discrimination - disparate treatment - in either of these hiring requirements. It suggests that a court should refuse to find national origin discrimination when the employer imposes a business and cultural familiarity requirement. However, when an applicant is denied employment solely on the basis of citizenship, a strong argument may be made that the …

Did The Stotts Decision Really Spell The End Of Race-Conscious Affirmative Action?, William L. Robinson, Stephen L. Spitz

NYLS Journal of Human Rights

No abstract provided.

Privacy And The Sex Bfoq: An Immodest Proposal, Carolyn S. Bratt

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

Since the adoption of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, courts have been called upon to determine whether an employer can avoid liability for refusing to hire employees of one sex by invoking the privacy rights of its customers. Two recent court decisions are illustrative of the question and its resolution. In Backus v. Baptist Medical Center, the defendant employer's policy of excluding male nurses from the labor and delivery section of its obstetrics and gynecology department was challenged. The defendant established that most of the duties of a labor and delivery nurse involve exposure to …

Discrimination Bans Demonstrate Approaching Maturity Of Employment Law, Theodore J. St. Antoine

Articles

The pervasive message of this symposium sponsored by the Labor Relations Law Section, whether or not intended by the individual authors, is that American employment law is moving beyond adolescence and may be approaching maturity.

Attorney's Fees In Title Vii Actions: Applying The Christiansburg Standard For Awards Against The Eeoc, Susan Jameson

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Employment Discrimination—The Bottom Line Defense In Disparate Impact Cases, Robert S. Tschiemer

University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law Review

No abstract provided.

Employee Selection Base On Susceptibility To Occupational Illness, Mark A. Rothstein

Michigan Law Review

This Article attempts to compile the latest information available concerning this difficult problem. Part I reviews the scientific literature, explaining the biological basis of increased risk of occupational disease. Part II explores the efforts of various employers to incorporate this research into their personnel practices. Part III surveys the legal response to these practices. Employees may challenge medical screening on a variety of theories, most of which were not designed to deal with the problem of susceptibility to occupational disease. Not surprisingly, none of the approaches offers an entirely satisfactory response to the problem. This Article offers no clear answers. …

Individual Rights In The Work Place: The Burger Court And Labor Law, Theodore J. St. Antoine

Book Chapters

The Supreme Court, like other institutions, must play the part that the times demand, often with small regard for the personal predilections of its membership. The Warren Court and the Burger Court, in their respective contributions to the law of union-employer-employee relations, almost reversed the roles they might have been expected to assume. The major accomplishment of the Court in the labor area during the Warren era was a fundamental restructuring of intergovernmental relationships, while the Court's overriding concern throughout the Burger decade of the 1970s and beyond has been the defining of individual rights in the work place.

Employment Problems Of The Handicapped: Would Title Vii Remedies Be Appropriate And Effective?, Cornelius J. Peck

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Article argues that the employment problems of the handicapped are not well-suited for treatment under a statutory discrimination model. Underlying this argument is the belief that the concept of discrimination is not adaptable to the problems of the handicapped, and efforts to apply it will only worsen existing problems. Part I begins by defining the meaning of discrimination, and then explores the similarities and differences between discrimination against the handicapped, and discrimination based on race, sex, religion, and national origin. The purpose of this discussion is to provide a basic framework for understanding claims that the handicapped should be …