SOC315
May 24, 2012
EEOC Paper
Throughout the history of the United States, there have been few laws or established commissions to protect employees from discrimination and harassment in the workplace. The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is responsible for enforcing federal laws with employers who have fifteen (15) employees or more (EEOC, n.d.). According to the EEOC (n.d.) website, the EEOC laws make it illegal to discriminate against a job applicant or an employee based on a person’s race, color, religion, sex (to include pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability, or genetic information. It is also illegal for a company to discriminate against a person because they complained …show more content…
Findlay Honda and Findlay Automotive Group, Inc. is a car dealership located in Henderson, NV. They were accused of subjecting two (2) black (Sydney Robinson and Jason Grinstead) employees to discrimination, harassment, and retaliation (Green, 2012). The lawsuit filed by the EEOC indicates a parts department manager frequently made racially derogatory comments and jokes, and imposed stricter work-related rules on black employees that non-black employees did not face (EEOC, n.d.). The two black employees were eventually fired; one was fired after communicating he was going to file a discrimination charge against Findlay Honda (EEOC, …show more content…
The EEOC investigates charges of discrimination against employers who are covered by the law (EEOC, n.d.). EEOC’s mission is to investigate fairly and accurately assess the allegations to make a finding (EEOC, n.d.). If it is determined that discrimination has occurred the EEOC will try to settle the charge; if unsuccessful, the EEOC has the authority to file a lawsuit in efforts to the rights of individuals and the interests to the public (EEOC, n.d.). EEOC laws apply to all types of work situations including hiring, firing, promotions, harassment, training, wages and benefits (EEOC, n.d.).
EEOC Role in Lawsuit
The EEOC filed a lawsuit on the two individual’s behalf in September 2010 for violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC said it was suing “to correct unlawful employment practices on the basis of race (black) and retaliation and to provide appropriate relief to Sydney Robinson, Jason Grinstead, and similarly-situated employees who were adversely affected by such practices” (Green, 2012). The EEOC provided representation and sought monetary compensation for the victims, while encouraging Findlay Honda to implement proactive measures to ensure