CDE CDE Legal Frameworks & Policy Development 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the primary distinction between 'disparate treatment' and 'disparate impact' in employment discrimination?
- Disparate treatment involves large companies; disparate impact involves small businesses
- Disparate treatment is intentional discrimination against an individual; disparate impact is unintentional harm to a group from a neutral policy (Correct answer)
- Disparate impact applies only to hiring; disparate treatment applies only to termination
- They are legally identical terms used interchangeably
Correct answer: Disparate treatment is intentional discrimination against an individual; disparate impact is unintentional harm to a group from a neutral policy
Disparate treatment requires proof of discriminatory intent toward an individual, while disparate impact focuses on statistical harm to a protected group from a neutral policy.
Question 2: Which executive order requires federal contractors to take affirmative action to ensure equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin?
- Executive Order 11246 (Correct answer)
- Executive Order 9066
- Executive Order 13985
- Executive Order 10925
Correct answer: Executive Order 11246
Executive Order 11246, signed by President Johnson in 1965, requires federal contractors to take affirmative action and is enforced by the OFCCP.
Question 3: What does a Bona Fide Occupational Qualification (BFOQ) allow an employer to do?
- Pay employees of different races different wages
- Use a protected characteristic (e.g., sex, religion) as a job requirement when it is essential to the core function of the position (Correct answer)
- Conduct background checks without consent
- Terminate employees without cause
Correct answer: Use a protected characteristic (e.g., sex, religion) as a job requirement when it is essential to the core function of the position
BFOQ is a narrow legal defense allowing employers to require a specific protected characteristic when it is genuinely necessary to job performance — for example, requiring a female actor to play a female role.
Question 4: A company policy requires all employees to be 'clean-shaven.' A Muslim employee requests an exception for religious reasons. Under Title VII, the employer should:
- Terminate the employee for non-compliance
- Grant a religious accommodation unless it poses an undue hardship (Correct answer)
- Transfer the employee to a non-customer-facing role without discussion
- Require the employee to provide a letter from their religious leader
Correct answer: Grant a religious accommodation unless it poses an undue hardship
Title VII requires employers to reasonably accommodate sincerely held religious beliefs unless doing so creates an undue hardship on the business.
Question 5: Which law protects workers age 40 and older from employment discrimination based on age?
- Title VII of the Civil Rights Act
- The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) (Correct answer)
- The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
- The Rehabilitation Act of 1973
Correct answer: The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)
The ADEA, enacted in 1967, prohibits employment discrimination against individuals 40 years of age or older and applies to employers with 20 or more employees.
Question 6: What is 'quid pro quo' harassment in the context of employment law?
- A Latin term for equal pay for equal work
- When submission to or rejection of sexual conduct is used as a basis for employment decisions (Correct answer)
- An OSHA safety regulation
- A form of retaliation for whistleblowing
Correct answer: When submission to or rejection of sexual conduct is used as a basis for employment decisions
Quid pro quo harassment occurs when a job benefit or adverse action is conditioned on an employee's response to unwelcome sexual advances or conduct.
CDE CDE Legal Frameworks & Policy Development 2
What is the primary distinction between 'disparate treatment' and 'disparate impact' in employment discrimination?