Equal Employment Opportunity Acts
The following acts and laws coincide with Title VII in regards to discrimination violations:
- Fair Labor Standards Act- Regulates the standards of employment of employees under the age of 18. The following are some of the highlights of the act. Minors who are 14 and 15 cannot work in hazardous work. They cannot be employed during school hours and are limited to three hours on school days. On days when the school is closed, they can work a maximum of forty hours a week. FLSA does not restrict the hours of work for minors who are 16 or 17 years old. What the act does is restrict their employment for certain hazardous jobs.
- Immigration Reform and Control Act- Prohibits employers from hiring un-authorized alien workers. Requires employers to pay minimum wage.
- Americans with Disabilities Act- The employer cannot deny employment to an employee with a disability unless they can prove that the disability will hinder their safety and/or cause hardship.
- Tort Law (Personal injury)- This protects the employee from an employer that tries to intrude into their personal life.
- Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)- A Federal law regulation customer credit information. These are two types of reports; the customer report contains information on credit worthlessness and the investigative consumer report contains more information on the personal character, reputation, and mode of living. If an employee is not hired based on the information in a credit report, the employer must notify the person and provide the name and address of the provider. If an employer is going to use an investigative consumer report, they must notify them within three days of requesting the report.
- Employee Polygraph protection Act- applies to almost all private sector jobs. There are two jobs that are exempt, employees that manufacture or distribute controlled substances and armed car services and security personnel. Under this act, employers cannot request or suggest that applicants undergo lie detector tests.
The following are the acts that refer to Fair Labor Standards
- Walsh-Healey Act- requires the payment of prevailing minimum rate for contractors that supply materials to the government in excess of $10,000.
- Davis-Beacon Act- Requires contractors that perform work in excess of $2,000 on federal projects to pay the prevailing wage and benefit rate to the employees.
- Family and Medical Leave Act- Requires employers to grant eligible employees up to twelve weeks of unpaid leave with the right to reinstatement to their job. The eligible employees must have worked at least 1,250 hours for their employer for one year and there must be at least 50 employees at their workstation or within 75 miles.
- Uniform Services Employment and Re-employment Act- Requires employers to grant unpaid leave for up to five years for an employee serving in the uniformed services.
- Jury System Improvement Act- prohibits an employer to discharge an employee because they were called to serve on jury duty.
- Health Insurance Portability Act- Redefined health insurance policies in regards to pre-existing medical conditions.
- OSHA Act- The federal act whose purpose is to ensure every man and woman safe and healthy working conditions.
- Whistle Blower Protection Act- prohibits federal government employers from retaliation against employees for disclosing information that provides a violation of the laws, rules, and regulations.
- Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA)- Covers most pension plans that are operated by private sector employers. The federal law preempts any state laws that seek to regulate pensions. ERISA deals with the following aspects of a pension plan:
- Participation
- Benefit accrual, vesting, breaks, and service
- Funding
- Administration
- Reporting and disclosure
- Joint and survivor pensions
- Plan termination
The OSHA, ERISA, EPPA, and the NLRA do not apply to government employees. The government has established its own rules and regulations. Civil service laws and rights are guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution.
