Human Resource Training - Essay Example

One aspect of this knowledge bank is recognition of legal concerns, particularly with Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which set out to define the protected classes in terms of employment standards. Although the protected classes have been changed and updated since the middle of last century, it remains a landmark piece of federal legislation that could mean the difference between legal safety and legal action. CRA of 1964: A Lesson in History Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects individuals from discrimination in the workplace based on their race, color, religion, sex, or national origin (LII, p. 1964). That is, when hiring an employee, the hiring manager is prohibited from letting his or her decision be influenced by one of these classes to which the applicant belongs.

This protection also extends to employees who may be discriminated against by some indirect form of prejudice, such as an association with another individual of a particular race, color, religion, sex, or national origin; for example, Title VII protects in this case from discrimination because of interracial marriage. . That is, if a hiring manager is blind to the differences between a grossly unqualified candidate and a very qualified candidate, this ultimately will weaken the business and potentially open the business to the possibility of a lawsuit based on negligent hiring.

However, the hiring manager should be blind to the nonessential differences, defined by the protected classes. Case Study: Sexual Harassment Of course, Title VII legal protection does not only extend to applicants for jobs; current employees are protected as well. In 1986, the Supreme Court ruled that sexual harassment, which is intimidation or coercion that leverages sex for favors, is an example of discrimination and prohibited by Title VII of the CRA (U.S. Supreme Court, 1986). In cases where members of an organization are accused of sexual harassment, there could be very serious legal consequences for the entire company, not just the individual who committed the act of harassment.

Of course, preventing sexual harassment theoretically begins at the initial hiring stages of employees, when the hiring manager should recognize potential conflicts between the individual’s personality and the company culture. However, human resources managers must always reinforce a positive culture that embraces differences rather than fosters an environment of discrimination against other employees. Because sexual harassment is a violation of federal law (as given in the Civil Rights Act and reinforced by the United States Supreme Court), the HR policy on the crime must be one of zero tolerance.

Case Study: The BFOQ Companies are allowed to discriminate between the protected classes of job applicants in a few select situations that are highly tied to the business concept of