978-0078023866 Chapter 13 Internet Exercise and Supplements Part 1

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Chapter 13 – Employment Law II: Discrimination

Internet Exercise and Supplements

Answers to Internet Exercise (p. 597)

1. Workplace Bullying is repeated, health-harming mistreatment of one or more persons (the

2. Employers react to laws with internal policies. The real value of a law, and the true purpose of the

3. Protected status or discriminatory intent need not be shown to meet the definition of workplace

bullying.

4. Fear of frivolous lawsuits is a primary argument against the Healthy Workplace Bill. For a

Answers

Answers to Practicing Ethics: ‘A “Look” at A&F’ Questions (p. 555)

a. The students can have a discussion based on this question. The same articled continued, “It

is the choice of a business to promote the image it desires, and it is the choice of the

b. Again, from the California Patriot: “If Abercrombie & Fitch does not represent the minority

population, then I want to sue FUBU for not representing the white population. If any

c. It would be wrong only if the store used unhealthy hiring practices. Bass Pro World LLC, a

a. This can be a discussion question. “While [a staff attorney at the Asian Pacific American

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Chapter 13 – Employment Law II: Discrimination

b. Students’ answers may vary. Although a company may get into trouble for their illegal hiring

a. Students can have a discussion based on this question. If students have work experience,

b. This can be a discussion question. Students’ answers may vary. It is not applicable for any

c. Students’ answers may vary. Some students might say that it is fair as long as the company

Answers to ‘Stopping Discrimination through Corporate Pledges’ Questions (p.

558)

1. Students’ answers may vary. Engaging in protection against emerging areas of discrimination

2. Yes, the job applicant has recourse to this situation because President Obama, in his 2014 State

Answers to ‘EEOC’s Strategic Plan’ Questions (p. 560)

1. The EEOC decided to focus on “systematic enforcement” as part of its strategic plan (which

includes investigation, litigation, research, federal sector oversight, policy development,

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Chapter 13 – Employment Law II: Discrimination

2. If the employer is suspected of a systematic pattern of discrimination without a specific individual

complaint, the EEOC, under Section 707 (e) of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is

3. For the identification and prevention of unlawful employment practices, the charge process was

Answer to ‘Disparate Treatment’ Questions (p. 561)

1. The students can have a discussion based on this case. Kimberly Ondricko (plaintiff) appealed

against the district court’s grant of summary judgment for the reversal in favor of defendant MGM

2. No, Ondricko cannot bring Title VII discrimination claims if O’Connor had not made the statement

3. Stalter won. The court indicated that, in considering the pretext issue in employment

Answer to ‘Spousal Discrimination?’ Question (p. 566)

1. The students can have a discussion based on this question. The court held, that an employer

Answer to ‘The Four-Fifths Rule and Disparate Impact’ Question (p. 566)

1. Reversing the lower court’s finding of disparate impact discrimination, the appellate court found

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Chapter 13 – Employment Law II: Discrimination

Answer to ‘National Origin’ Question (p. 568)

1. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the summary judgment granted to the employer and

remanded the claim for further proceedings. The appellate court viewed Adkinson’s comments

regarding Rodriguez’s accent as direct evidence of national origin discrimination.

Answers to ‘Lean In’ Questions (p. 570)

1. Students can have a discussion on this. Sandberg’s observations can be agreed upon. There are

2. The choices women make include family influence over work. Also, they should increase their

sense of development when it comes to career advancement. Client preference based on

3. While the study showed the stated results, Victoria Brescoll, the study’s author, also said that

Answers to ‘What about Hooters?’ Questions (p. 573)

1. Students can have a discussion on this question. Have students consider other jobs and their

2. This can be a discussion question. Although it may be a waste of time and tax dollars for the

Answer to ‘Looks Discrimination’ Questions (p. 574)

1. Both cases deal with appearance at work, and adverse employment actions resulting from female

employees’ appearance. However, in Jespersen, an appearance policy was set forth by the

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Chapter 13 – Employment Law II: Discrimination

2. Students can have a discussion based on this question. Ask students to review other laws and

Answers to ‘CEOs on Maternity Leave’ Questions (p. 575)

1. After resuming work from the maternity leave, women still have certain personal factors to take

care of such as breastfeeding, health status, and also work-related factors such as timing,

Answers to ‘Work-Life Balance and Sex Discrimination’ Questions (p. 575)

1. The district court awarded damages including punitive damages and front pay. The Eleventh

2. Students should have a discussion based on this question. Employee morale and higher

Answer to ‘Salary Negotiating Skills’ Question (p. 576)

1. No, because the employer had demonstrated that the pay differential was based on a factor other

than sex.

Answer to ‘The Customer Is Not Always Right’ Question (p. 576)

1. The employer should be held liable for workplace harassment by its customers. The EEOC filed a

suit for sexual harassment violation under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 after it tried to

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Chapter 13 – Employment Law II: Discrimination

Answers to ‘Consider the Source: Sexual Harassment at the Casino’ Questions

(p. 581)

1. Students’ answers may vary. The court’s reasoning seems reasonable as it found that the bar

2. Students can have a discussion on this question. Since the court already held that the alleged

Answer to ‘Religious Discrimination’ Questions (p. 590)

1. Wilson had taken a personal vow to wear a graphic anti-abortion button “until there was an end to

abortion.” Both parties agreed that Wilson acted from a sincere religious belief and also that the

button caused a great deal of disruption at work—other employees threatened to walk off the job,

2. Sufficient evidence of a prima facie case of religious discrimination by Thompson was proffered

3. Voss Lighting paid 482,500 to the job candidate against which he was allegedly denied a job

Answers to ‘“Getting to Work” with Reasonable Accommodation’ Questions (p.

592)

1. The appellate court found that a reasonable jury could find that Colwell was an individual with a

2. This can be a discussion question. Shift changes and employee carpooling might be among the

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Chapter 13 – Employment Law II: Discrimination

3. The students can discuss this case. Lead students either in a Socratic dialogue or a group

exercise in which they identify and analyze differing facts between the scenario given and Colwell

Answer to ‘ADA’ Questions (p. 593)

1. The Court dismissed Core’s claim after reviewing that there was no reasonable accommodation

from the parties’ declaration. Also, the Sixth Circuit it unreasonable to maintain a fragrance-free

2. Even though Foley claims that Morgan Stanley terminated him immediately after he found out that

Answer to ‘Reverse Age Discrimination’ Question (p. 595)

1. This can be a discussion question for the students. Instructors might ask students if they have

Answers to ‘Age Discrimination’ Questions (p. 595)

1. Considering the supervisor’s remarks in the context of all the evidence, the instant court found

a. One argument would be that overqualification could function as a proxy for impermissible

b. The Ninth Circuit affirmed the lower court, holding that there was no violation of the ADA.

The court pointed out that there was no evidence that the overqualification standard had in

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Chapter 13 – Employment Law II: Discrimination

rejecting Pugh was objective and non-age-related.”

Cases and Answers

Griggs v. Duke Power Co., 401 U.S. 424 (1971) (p. 563)

Syllabus

Black employees of a power company brought a class action against their employer in the

United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina. The employees alleged

that the employer violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by requiring a high school

diploma and a satisfactory intelligence test score for certain jobs that had been limited to white

employees before the passage of Title VII. The plaintiffs alleged that these practices had the

consequence of preserving the effects of the employer’s prior racial discrimination. The district

court dismissed their complaint. The circuit court reversed, holding that residual discrimination

arising from past employment practices was insulated from remedial action, but it affirmed the

district court’s holding that absent a discriminatory purpose, the diploma and test requirements

were proper.

On certiorari, the Supreme Court reversed, expressing the unanimous view that Title VII

prohibits an employer from requiring a high school education or passing of a standardized

general intelligence test as a condition of employment or to transfer to jobs when: (1) neither

standard is shown to be significantly related to successful job performance, (2) both

requirements operate to disqualify blacks at a substantially higher rate than white applicants,

and (3) the jobs in question formerly had been filled only by white employees as part of a

longstanding practice of giving preference to whites.

Answers to ‘Griggs v. Duke Power Co.’ Questions (p. 563)

1. According to Chief Justice Burger, the purpose of Title VII “was to achieve equality of employment

2. No. Intent is not relevant in cases under the adverse impact theory.

3. Whether the high school diploma requirement and/or the intelligence tests could be shown to

4. Yes, the state’s social and educational history is responsible for the fact that the percentage of

5. Applying adverse impact analysis to these facts, a California court held that the employer was

a. The case could be challenged under an adverse impact theory. Since the defendant’s motion

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Chapter 13 – Employment Law II: Discrimination

a. This can be a discussion question. Whether word-of-mouth recruiting violates title VII should

b. The courts have generally held that word-of-mouth recruiting is not per se violative of Title

c. To answer this question, apply the adverse impact tests discussed in the chapter. Eventually,

Pietras v. Farmingville Fire District, 180 F. 3d 468 (2d Cir. 1999); cert. den. 528

U.S. 948 (1999) (p. 571)

Syllabus

The Second Circuit affirmed the district court decision that Farmingville’s physical agility test

for probationary firefighters had an impermissible disparate impact on women. The pass rate

of women compared to men met the “four-fifths” rule in that the female pass rate was only

57%, while the male pass rate was 95%. Farmingville completely failed to show that the

required 4 minute time to complete the test reflected the needs of the job, rather it was simply

an average of the times it actually took a certain group of firefighters to complete the test, plus

an extra half-minute “to have some leeway.” Further, Pietras presented expert testimony from

an exercise physiologist who concluded that the test was not job related.

Answers to ‘Pietras v. Farmingville Fire District’ Questions (p. 571)

a. Farmingville failed to demonstrate the job-relatedness of its physical agility test. Simply

b. No. Intentional discrimination played no role in the appeal. Several other women passed the

c. Farmingville needed to demonstrate, in a reasonably scientific fashion, the job-relatedness of

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Chapter 13 – Employment Law II: Discrimination

its test.

a. Students can have a discussion on this question. It may be fruitful to have students consider

the phrase “so long as they are otherwise well qualified.” Might there not be other

b. The plaintiffs’ evidence regarding the women officers who failed the physical fitness test was

rejected as irrelevant by the district court. But under the standard implicit in Griggs as well as

a. Basically, the World Women’s World raised customer preference, privacy, and cost

arguments.

b. The EEOC initially won a summary judgment, but the district court vacated that ruling and

sent the case back for trial. The World Women’s World then settled with the EEOC agreeing

4. The Court found that Rawlinson had made out a prima facie case of discrimination under Title VII

by showing that the height/weight requirements would exclude over 40% of the female population

but only 1% of the male population (an adverse impact argument). In addition, it held that

McCormack v. Safeway 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17805 (D. Ariz. 2014) (p. 578)

Syllabus

Plaintiffs are two women, Mary McCormack and Samantha Stabenchek, who worked as cashiers for a

Safeway store in Scottsdale, Arizona. Jose Lopez, a general clerk at the store, cornered Ms.

Stabenchek, grabbed her buttocks, and kissed her. Plaintiffs allege that the assault was the

culmination of months of sexual harassment in which Lopez made inappropriate comments to

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Chapter 13 – Employment Law II: Discrimination

Stabenchek in the workplace and sent her sexually explicit text messages. McCormack reported

ported Lopez’s conduct. Stabenchek participated in Safeway’s internal investigation which led to

Lopez’s termination.

Less than a month after reporting the sexual assault, Plaintiffs were both interviewed about

McCormack’s alleged violation of Safeway’s coupon policy. Safeway alleges that a Safeway security

analyst reported that it appeared as though McCormack was violating the company’s coupon policies.

McCormack was suspended pending further investigation. Feeling that their honesty was impugned,

the Plaintiffs resigned. Stabenchek has asserted [a] sexual harassment … [claim] against Safeway

under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 … (“Title VII”). The court ordered that Defendant’s motion

for summary judgment is granted.

Answers to ‘McCormack v. Safeway’ Questions (p.578)

a. Plaintiffs assert that Lopez was Stabenchek’s supervisor under Vance because he was in

charge of the store during some of Stabenchek’s shifts and because he sat in on

b. Lopez and others placed in charge of a store during shifts cannot be considered supervisors

2. Parkins needs to establish a prima facie case of retaliation. Parkins wanted to show that she was

harassed by her supervisors and that she suffered a tangible employment action, in which case

a. A situation which might meet the court’s evidentiary requirements for quid pro quo might be

that Craig was demoted or terminated after refusing Byrd’s sexual demands.

b. The employer took reasonable care to prevent and correct promptly the sexual harassment

at issue. It had a procedure in place for filing sexual harassment complaints. The employer

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Chapter 13 – Employment Law II: Discrimination

a. The court said the reasonable person standard “tends to be male-biased and tends to

b. Social science evidence indicates that men and women view sexual issues differently with

Ricci v. DeStefano, 129 S. Ct. 2658 (2009) (p. 586)

Syllabus

New Haven, Conn. uses objective examinations to identify those firefighters best qualified for

promotion. On the examination in question under which no black candidates were eligible for

immediate promotion, the city threw out the results based on that statistical disparity and to avoid

potential liability for discrimination based on a disparate impact against the black candidates. The

white and Hispanic firefighters brought a Title VII claim disparate treatment. The U.S. Supreme Court

held that the city improperly discarded the examination to achieve a more desirable racial distribution

of promotion-eligible candidates, since there was no strong basis in evidence that such an action was

needed to avoid disparate impact. Statistical disparity in itself was insufficient by itself to constitute a

strong basis in evidence of unlawful disparate impact, the extensively analyzed examinations were

job-related and consistent with business necessity, and there was no solid evidence of an equally

valid, less-discriminatory testing alternative.

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