Equal Employment Opportunity Law Key Terms

Become familiar with key terms relating to the complexities of Equal Employment Opportunity Laws

By Michele Vrouvas

Equal employment opportunity laws are federal regulations enacted in the United States at various times since the 1960s. The purpose of these laws is to prohibit the practice of any form of discrimination in the workplace, whether that discrimination is based upon sex, race, religion or national origin. Since 1964, when the federal government made its first forceful declaration of its anti-discrimination in the workplace stance, the laws have been amended by various acts to keep up with changes in society. Considering that businesses that do not comply with these laws face stiff penalties, there's no denying just how important it is for you to become conversant with equal employment opportunity law key terms.

The Equal Pay Act of 1963 (EPA)

When the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 was amended to ensure that women who performed the same work as men did not receive less pay, it was called the Equal Pay Act of 1963.
Try: Access EEOC to read the complete text of the Equal Pay Act, particularly the sections discussing how the act affects minimum-wage laws and the limited exemptions to minimum-wage and maximum-hour requirements.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

With the passage of Title VII, it became illegal for any employer to refuse to hire, promote, protect the rights, or provide benefits to or extend any other privileges of employment to individuals on the basis of their race, religious creed or sex.
Try: Find Law presents Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in its entirety. Pay special attention to the legal definitions set forth in subsections (a) through (i) of Section 701.

The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA)

Any business that employs more than 20 people must comply with the ADEA. Passed in 1967, this federal law protects employees who are older than 40 from being terminated, passed over for promotions, exempted from other benefits or forced to retire simply because of their age.
Try: Check out HumanResourceBlog, which discusses exceptions to the law.

Harassment-free environment

Equal opportunity employment law experts counsel business owners that in order to demonstrate their compliance with these laws they must strive to create harassment-free environments. The term refers to a workplace in which supervisors don't tolerate inappropriate comments, intimidation or any other forms of inappropriate conduct.
Try: Bridgepoint uses real-life situations to demonstrate how employers and HR staffers can put these goals into practice.

Rehabilitation Act of 1973

Passage of the Rehabilitation Act in 1973 meant that disabled persons were now under the umbrella of federal employment laws and could not bear the brunt of discrimination from their employers.
Try: Find the verbatim text of this act from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The preamble compares Sections 501 and 505 to this addendum of the United States Code.

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)

Though closely related to the ADEA of 1967, the Americans with Disabilities Act was further amended in 1990. The revisions mainly concerned legal definitions of disabilities and qualifications standards.
Try: Not only can you get the full text version of the amended 1990 Act at ADA, but you can also compare it with previous editions by reviewing the language that was deleted.