Affirmative Action - Disparate Treatment

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination in employment on the basis of race, color, sex, creed, religion, or national origin. Under a disparate treatment theory, which the Supreme Court has described as the most easily understood type of discrimination, an employer simply treats some people less favorably than others because of their race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Proof of discriminatory motive is critical. Thus, preferential or differential treatment of individuals because of their race runs afoul of the statutory prohibition.

Employee Benefit Plans

The Employee Retirement Income Act of 1974 ERISA is a federal statute that dictates how employee benefit plans provided by private employers are administered. ERISA rules do not ordinarily allow pension assets to be assigned or alienated; however, one major exception applies when a pension plan participant becomes separated and divorced. In such a case, pension assets may be subject to a property division under a court order or court approval of a settlement agreement.

Appealing a General Schedule Classification

The General Schedule (GS) Classification System is the scheme under which "white collar" federal competitive civil service jobs are classified for pay purposes. Employees placed into the same "class" of employment are also entitled to be treated similarly with regard to promotion, hiring, and other personnel decisions.

Arbitration -- Labor Agreements -- Substantive Arbitrability

In addition to wages, hours, and benefits, one of the fundamental elements of the labor agreement between a company and a union is the procedure for filing a grievance. Grievance procedures refer to the process by which employers and employees deal with disputes over contract terms, disciplinary actions, and terminations. Based on the nature of the issue and the level of disagreement, these procedures range from simply filing a complaint to a full-blown lawsuit. Somewhere in the middle is arbitration.

Churches and Title VII Liability

Title VII Background