Human Resources - Discrimination at Work

Résumé du document

To discriminate is to make a distinction. It is "a treatment or consideration based on class or category rather than individual merit, partiality or prejudice". Discrimination is defined in the French similar to the American civil rights law as unfavorable or unfair treatment of a person or class of persons in comparison to others who are not members of the protected class because of race, sex, color, religion, national origin, age, physical/mental handicap, sexual harassment, sexual orientation or reprisal for opposition to discriminatory practices. French and American laws prohibit an employer from discriminating persons in all aspects regarding employment, including recruitment, selection, evaluation, promotion, training, compensation, discipline, retention and working conditions, because of their protected status. Discriminatory employment practices have become more subtle and more difficult to identify and correct, while the workplace continues to reflect unfair and unlawful discrimination. We will probe into the various situations of discrimination in the workplace in these countries.

Extraits

[...] Laws have been the driving force to reduce discrimination in the workplace. Associations and government try to fight against this phenomenon. Many efforts have been done and many efforts will always be necessary. Even if it is very difficult to measure it and in that way to assess it. It is an endless problem and no solution seems to be very successful. New solutions like positive discrimination are applied in the United States and France. But we need to be very carefully with it because of the negative side. [...]

[...] Human Resources - Discrimination at Work Table of contents I. Introduction II. Problems statement III. Research Questions IV. Methodology V. Results and Findings VI. Conclusions and Recommendations VII. References Introduction To discriminate is to make a distinction. It is treatment or consideration based on class or category rather than individual merit, partiality or prejudice”[1]. Discrimination is defined in the French like in the American civil rights law as unfavourable or unfair treatment of a person or class of persons in comparison to others who are not members of the protected class because of race, sex, color, religion, national origin, age, physical/mental handicap, sexual harassment, sexual orientation or reprisal for opposition to discriminatory practices. [...]

[...] We can add to those penalties, sanctions envisaged in the 225-19 article of the penal code. The moral persons could also be suitable; they incur a 150.000 fine, they also could be proscribed of working or having a social life in the company where the problem occurred and also they can be placed under legal surveillance. Like every penal offences, discrimination is submissive to the proof right: there is a principle of freedom and presumption of innocence. In this case, the person who is the victim of discrimination has to prove it. [...]

[...] History Discrimination against minority groups is an important subject and is protected by law. Like in France, this principle was introduced a long time ago. For example, the Fifth Amendment to the US Constitution (ratified in 1791) states that person shall be deprived if life, liberty, or property, without due process of the law”. The Thirteenth Amendment (ratified in 1865) outlawed slavery and has been held by the courts to bar racial discrimination. The Fourteenth Amendment (ratified in 1868) makes it illegal for any state to “make and enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges and immunities of citizens of the United States” and the courts have generally viewed this law as barring discrimination on the basis of sex or national origin, as well as race[4]. [...]

[...] Conclusion Discrimination occurs when; otherwise equal individuals are treated differently on account of membership in different groups. In this sense, discrimination is inherently a group phenomenon. Evidence of employment discrimination can be sought by asking whether members of different groups are treated differently for reasons not associated with productivity differences. All minorities, in France like in the United States, made economic progress in the labor market without benefit of a federal law barring discrimination. Economic progress was difficult but these immigrants made greater progress with the law. [...]