Racial
discrimination continues to be the leading
basis of charges filed with the Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Of
the charges filed in 2006, more than a third
(36%) alleged some form of racial
discrimination. In February of this year the
agency launched a program called ‘E-RACE’ to
provide guidance to assist employers in
efforts to reduce race and color based
discrimination in the workplace. E-RACE, which
stands for Eradicating Racism and
Collorism from Employment, focuses on
the way employers hire and promote minorities.
Particular emphasis will be placed on how
employers use names, criminal records, credit
reports and employment and personality tests
in hiring and promotion decisions. The agency
also plans to study how technology and the
increased use of online video resumes may
disparately impact minorities.
Employers can use the issues raised in the
E-RACE initiative to evaluate their own
employment practices and avoid the increasing
pitfalls that lead to costly discrimination
charges. Some suggested questions that each
employer should ask about its own practices
include:
To what extent are objective performance criteria used in hiring and
promotion decisions?
Are job opportunities openly posted and
available to all applicants?
Are structured employment interviews
regularly practiced as a basis of employment
and advancement?
The best defense is almost certainly a good
offense when dealing with discrimination in
the workplace and the best offense is to
continually build a best practices model to
guide your company’s employment environment.
The EEOC believes that companies that can
answer ‘yes’ to the above questions are moving
in the right direction. To get and stay ahead
of the curve you should make self-audits a
regular part of your HR management practices
and the evaluation process should extend to
all protected classes not just race.
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It is
illegal to discriminate in pay under Title VII
of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Act
requires that charges of discriminatory
employment decisions be filed within 180 days
of the alleged discrimination event. The U.S.
Supreme Court has ruled that workers must file
charges of pay discrimination within 180 days
of the pay change alleged to be
discriminatory or lose their right to sue the
employer. This ruling dramatically limits
potential suits for pay discrimination from
what has been accepted in the past. In
Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co.
the Court’s interpretation focuses on the
meaning of ‘event’ when applying the 180 day
rule. The plaintiff’s suit claimed that she
had received lower pay increases over her 20+
years of employment based upon sexual
discrimination. Therefore, she argued that
each pay check over that period represented a
new ‘event’ for application of the 180 day
filing requirement. The Court did not agree
with this argument ruling that the early dates
of discrimination were well beyond the 180 day
provision for filing claims and thus barred
the suit against her employer.
Where is this going to take us? Both plaintiff
and employer law firms see the possibility of
a wave of pay discrimination charges to
establish timely filing under this new
standard. The Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission reports that 4,905 pay
discrimination claims were filed in the 2006
fiscal year under various statutes, including
2,308 based on sex, 2,038 based on race and
577 based on national origin. If workers are
forced to make quick decisions about whether a
pay increase is discriminatory, these numbers
could increase dramatically.
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ANSWERS
FROM THE HEILPLINE |
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HOW TO COMPLY WITH THE ONE DAY OF REST
IN SEVEN ACT
Q. Can employers schedule their employees to
work 7 days in a row?
A. An employer needs to look at the Sunday –
Saturday calendar week when scheduling
employees in order to comply with the One
Day of Rest in Seven Act. This act
requires one 24-hour period off within the
Sunday – Saturday calendar week (even though
employers may use a different workweek for
payroll purposes). An employer can actually
work an employee 12 days in a row and still be
in compliance with this act. For example, an
employee can work Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday,
Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday,
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. The
employer is in compliance because the first
week the employee has Sunday off, and the
second week the employee has Saturday off.
While this type of schedule is not advised, it
is an illustration of how the act works.
Q. What if I have employees that want to
work Sunday through Saturday without a day
off?
A. If an employer deems it necessary to work
employees on their scheduled day of rest, they
may do so if the work assignment is voluntary
and the employer obtains a permit from the
Fair Labor Standards Division of the Illinois
Department of Labor.
Q. How do I get a permit?
A. You can send a notice stating that you
intend to work approximately ______ number of
employees, on a voluntary basis, on their
designated day of rest, in the following
occupations ________ for the calendar week(s)
of _______ through __________.
Send the notice to:
Fair Labor Standards Division
IDOL
160 N. LaSalle Street, Suite C 1300
Chicago, IL 60601
Phone (312)793-2804
Fax (312)814-1210 Attn: ODRIS
Q. How long can I typically get a
permit for?
A. You can get a permit for up to eight weeks
without having to prove any special need to
work employees on their scheduled day of rest.
Permits for more than eight weeks in any one
calendar year may be granted by the Department
of Labor if it is found that the necessity for
such work cannot be remedied by increasing the
number of employees or by adjusting production
schedules, and that no employee with those
skills is currently laid off.
Q. Are there any other exemptions under
the One Day of Rest in Seven Act that would
allow my employees to work on their scheduled
day off?
A. Yes, exemptions from the One Day of Rest in
Seven Act are as follows:
• Executives, administrators, professionals
and outside salespersons – exempt employees as
defined by the Fair Labor Standards Act
• Supervisors, as defined by the National
Labor Relations Act
• Part-time employees working less than 20
hours per week
• Employees required in emergencies, due to
breakdown of machinery or equipment or other
unexpected difficulty requiring prompt
attention to prevent injury to persons, damage
to property, or suspension of necessary
operations. This refers to a sudden, urgent,
unforeseen occurrence requiring immediate
action
• Employees in coal mining and agriculture
• Seasonal canning and processing or
perishable agricultural products (not more
than 20 weeks a year)
• Watchmen or security guards
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The
results of a recent study of the incidence of
coronary problems in the workplace says that
the risk of a cardiac incident is 55% greater
among those who feel that their boss is
unfair. Those workers who reported a high
degree of perceived unfairness tended to be
smokers, obese, sedentary and non-drinkers.
Women reported the highest incidence of
perceived unfair treatment by their bosses.
The findings of the study adjusted for these
biases. Those who perceived
‘moderate-not-high’ unfairness were associated
with the greatest risk for poor physical
performance. As an employer, it's hard to know
what to do with information like this. Is it
just another area of future liability or can
studies such as this be used to develop
affirmative programs for a healthy workforce?
Click here for more information on this
study.
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There are
an estimated 50 million Americans with
physical or mental disabilities. When they
enter the workplace they are protected by the
provisions of the Americans with Disabilities
Act which says that an employer must make
reasonable accommodations to assist the
disabled employee in his or her job. Taken
together - the large number of persons with
disabiliies and the required accommodations -
it would seem that the overall workplace cost
attributable to disabilities would be
staggeringly high. Fortunately, however,
employers report that they only have to make
an accommodation for about 24% of their
workers with a disability. They also report
the cost of reasonable accommodation is
frequently not high.
But employers should be aware of a larger
problem with the remaining workforce that can
sometimes result from implementing
accommodations. This can occur in cases where
flexible work scheduling and telecommuting are
allowed for an employee with a disability but
not for others. Employers should be aware of
this secondary effect on their general
workforce and they should rationalize their
policies to be seen as ‘fair-minded’. When the
disabled are not viewed as the beneficiaries
of some unfair advantage, the potential
negative impact on morale and productivity is
often eliminated entirely. |
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June 21, 2007
Holiday Inn Mart Plaza, Chicago
The Illinois Chamber presents the most
important healthcare conference to be held in
Illinois in 2007! The featured speaker will be
the former governor of Florida, Jeb Bush.
Governor Bush’s appearance is sponsored by
CIGNA. Agenda topics include:
- The Future of the Healthcare Marketplace
in Illinois
- Latest Trends in Consumer-Driven
Healthcare
- Cost and Quality Concerns for Employers
and Healthcare Providers
- Wellness Programs and Their Return on
Investment
- How Technology is Changing Healthcare
- Healthcare Costs and Employers’ Legal
Rights
- The Role of Supplemental Benefits in
Employee Compensation
Register Now Online
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Knowing
what you can and can't do will help you
prevent costly mistakes. Call our staff of HR
experts. Let Pam Holleman help you deal with
problems safely and avoid disputes. You can
reach the Helpline toll-free at 800-322-4722. |
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Your
membership in the Illinois Chamber pays! We
offer valuable programs and services to our
members at special discounts.
Click here for our growing list of
outstanding seminars, workshops and programs
that will help you with your everyday business
needs. |
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The
Chamber urges all Illinois employers to
recognize their Guard and Reserve employees by
signing and displaying the ESGR Statement of
Support. To get yours, simply complete an
online form and you will receive a
personalized certificate that demonstrates
your support. Also visit the SBA Veteran's
Business Development web site for assistance
to small business owners that have employees
activated in the Guard or Reserves. |
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The
HR Exec - Copyright © 2007 The Illinois Chamber
Wood S. McComb, Editor
Pam Holleman, Manager, Human Resource
Information
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