Lecture 6

Race & Color

National Origin Discrimination

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 Chapter 6 Race
and Color
Discrimination

©2019 McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. Authorized only for instructor use in the classroom. No reproduction or further distribution permitted without
the prior written consent of McGraw-Hill Education.
 Learning Objectives 1
• Discuss and give important details on the history of
race discrimination and civil rights issues in the
United States.
• Explain the relevance of the history of civil rights to
present-day workplace race and color discrimination
issues.
• Set forth the findings of several recent studies on
race inequalities.

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 Learning Objectives 2
• Identify several ways that race and color
discrimination are manifested in the workplace.
• Explain why national origin issues have recently been
included under race discrimination claims by the EEOC
and why they remain different.
• Describe ways in which an employer can avoid
potential liability for race and color discrimination.

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 Introduction
• Race is the first of the prohibited categories in Title
VII.
• Southern Poverty Law Center issued a report in
February 2011 showing that the number of hate
groups in the United States has risen to over 1,000.
• EEOC’s 2016 statistics still show that race
discrimination claims account for 35.3 percent of
total claims filed.

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 UAE Law
▪ https://www.thenational.ae/uae/government/scan
-of-uae-job-market-shows-how-rife-
discrimination-by-gender-and-nationality-is-
1.769698
▪ https://www.clydeco.com/insight/article/uae-and-
ksa-introduce-workplace-anti-discrimination-
legislation

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 Amendments to UAE Law
▪ Federal Decree Law No. 6 of 2019 amending
Federal Decree Law No. 8 of 1980 Regulating
Labour Relations (Labour Law)
▪ Anti-discrimination: a new article has been introduced, prohibiting discrimination
which prejudices equal opportunity employment, equal access to jobs, continuity
of employment, and enjoyment of rights. Discrimination is also prohibited
between those with the same employment duties
▪ Gender segregation: a new article has been introduced, making way for the
Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation to regulate circumstances in
which male and female employees may not be employed to work together. It
remains to be seen what further legislation on this will be introduced and whether
it will be sector sepcfic
▪ Female working restrictions repealed: the previous restrictions pertaining to
female night time work and employment of female employees in dangerous,
arduous or detrimental to health or morals roles have been repealed

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▪ Pregnancy and maternity protection: a new article has been introduced
prohibiting employers from terminating or serving a notice of termination to
pregnant female employees. Such terminations are classed as arbitrary
dismissal under the law
▪ Criminal liability: the scope of criminal liability provisions under the Labour
Law have been limited, such that their application only extends to
employers or their representatives and a minor’s guardian or trustee where
such individuals have consented to the minor's employment contrary to the
provisions of chapter two of the Labour Law pertaining to employment of
minors
▪ Emiratisation: the amendments to the Labour Law grant wider powers to the
Cabinet to issue further resolutions pertaining to the promotion of Emirati
nationals in the labour market and general resolutions regulating the
employment of workers in establishments, continuing the trend of
encouraging UAE nationals to enter the private sector workforce

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 Recent Studies on Race Inequalities 1
• Employers would rather hire a white man who had
served time in prison than a black man who had not.
• Applicants with ethnic names received fewer
callbacks for jobs than the identical résumés with
traditionally white names.
• African-Americans who leave messages in response
to ads often never receive return calls, while whites
almost always do.

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 Recent Studies on Race Inequalities 2
• Networking within an organization and having a
mentor do not give African-American men the same
measurable benefits as whites.
• Racial stereotypes and attitudes heavily influenced
the labor market.
• Majority of Americans say racism against blacks is
widespread.

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 Evolving Definitions of Race
• With regard to Title VII, race has been almost
exclusively about African-Americans and whites.
• Discrimination against other groups considered
primarily under the national origin category.
• EEOC published a Revised Race/National Origin
Guidance.

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 EEOC’s Revised Race/National Origin
Guidance
New forms of discrimination are emerging as workforce
demographics evolve.
Issue of race discrimination in America is
multidimensional.
• EEOC receives race and color discrimination charges alleging
multiple or intersecting prohibited bases such as age,
disability, gender, national origin, and religion.
• Case: Alonzo v. Chase Manhattan Bank, N.A.

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 EEOC’s E-RACE Initiative
Why Do We Need E-RACE?
• Most frequently filed claims with the EEOC are issues related
to race.

According to a 2005 Gallup poll, the percentage of

incidents of discrimination witnessed or experienced
was:
• 31 percent by Asian-Americans.
• 26 percent by African-Americans.

Color discrimination claims are on the rise.

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 EEOC’s Revised Race Guidance
Title VII’s prohibition of race discrimination
encompasses:
• Ancestry.
• Physical characteristics.
• Race-linked illness.
• Culture and perception.
• Association.
• Subgroup or “race plus.”
• “Reverse” race discrimination (against Caucasians).

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 EEOC’s National Origin Guidance
National origin discrimination is prohibited based on:
• Employment Decisions.
• Harassment.
• Accent discrimination.
• English fluency and English-only rules.

Coverage of foreign nationals.

• Discrimination against individuals employed in the United
States is prohibited regardless of citizenship.

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 Present-day Race Issues
New racism - Idea that whites think everything is fair
for everyone, so nothing need be done to ensure equal
opportunity anymore.
Study of intentional workplace discrimination released
•by15
Alfred and
percent of Ruth Blumrosen experience
African-Americans in 2002. intentional

workplace discrimination.

Eastman Kodak Co. – proactive pay raises

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Background of Racial Discrimination in the
United States 1
History and its present-day effects account for much of
the race discrimination seen today.
Slavery lasted for over 200 years until after the Civil
War ended in 1865.
Jim Crow laws were created after the Reconstruction.
• Legalized and codified racial discrimination.
• Slave Codes were simply renamed “Black Codes” and used
virtually as if slavery had never ended.

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 Background of Racial Discrimination in the
United States 2
• Segregated public schools were outlawed by the U.S.
Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.
• Civil Rights Acts of 1964.
• Voting Rights Act of 1965.

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 Race: Putting It All Together
U.S. Department of Labor Glass Ceiling Studies in 1991
and 1995 found that:
• “Glass ceiling” exists beyond which minorities rarely progress.
• Monitoring for equal access and opportunity was almost never
considered a corporate responsibility.
• Neither employee appraisals nor total compensation systems
were usually monitored.
• If analyzed and monitored, race discrimination could be
discovered and addressed before it progressed to litigation.

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 General Considerations
Title VII was enacted primarily in response to
discrimination against African-Americans in the
country, but the act applies equally to all.
Race discrimination can occur to any group and is
equally prohibited under Title VII.
• McDonald v. Santa Fe Transportation.

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 Recognizing Race Discrimination 1
The latest EEOC statistics for FY 2016 indicated:
• Race remains one of the most frequent types of claim filed
with the agency.
• Many claims involve systemic race discrimination affecting
hundreds of employees.

• Often employers are held liable because they treated

employees of a particular race differently without
even realizing.

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 Recognizing Race Discrimination 2
Seemingly small or subtle cases of race discrimination.
• Vaughn v. Edel, Scenario 2.
• Bradley v. Pizzaco of Nebraska, Inc., d/b/a Domino’s Pizza,
Scenario 3.

Unusual manifestation of racial discrimination covered

by Title VII.
• Case: Chandler v. Fast Lane, Inc.

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 Racial Harassment
To hold an employer liable for racial harassment, the
employee must show that the harassment was:
• Unwelcome.
• Based on race.
• So severe or pervasive that it altered the conditions of
employment and created an abusive environment.
• There is a basis for imposing liability on the employer.

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 A Word About Color
Color has been a divisive issue for as long as African-
Americans have been in the United States.
• One of the five categories included in Title VII as a prohibited
basis for discrimination.

• Color discrimination can exist among people of the

same race.

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 Sharia and Q’uranic views
▪ racial discrimination – class discussion

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 Management Tips 1
• Believe that race discrimination occurs and be willing
to investigate it when it is alleged.
• Make sure that there is a top-down message that the
workplace will not tolerate race discrimination in any
form.
• Do not shy away from discussing race when the issue
arises.
• Provide a positive, nonthreatening, constructive
forum for the discussion of racial issues.

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 Management Tips 2
• Be aware of cultural differences that may be
connected, at least in part, to race, when doing things
at the workplace.
• When an employee reports discrimination based on
race, do not suggest that he or she must be mistaken.
• Offer support groups if there is an expressed need.

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 Management Tips 3
• Offer training in racial awareness and sensitivity.
• Constantly monitor workplace hiring, termination,
training, promotion, raises, and discipline to ensure
that they are fair and even-handed.

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