Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, employers may not discriminate against employees on the basis of sex. Sex discrimination (also called gender discrimination) encompasses discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, and related conditions, as well as sexual harassment.
Title VII didn't prohibit sex discrimination as it was originally proposed in Congress. The prohibition on sex discrimination was added to the Civil Rights Act by a Congressman who apparently thought his amendment was so controversial and ridiculous that it would scuttle the legislation in its entirety. This effort failed, however, and today most of us take this protection for granted. Unfortunately, some companies and managers didn't get the message: More than 29,000 charges of sex discrimination were filed at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the federal agency that enforces Title VII, in 2010 alone.
What Is Sex Discrimination?
Sex discrimination occurs when an employer treats employees or applicants differently because of their gender. For example, an employer who promotes only men to managerial positions, pays women less than men for doing the same job, or makes decisions based on misconceptions about gender (for instance, that men need to be paid more becuase they are more likely to be supporting families, or that women won't be willing to take overnight business trips because it will require them to leave their children), is engaging in sex discrimination.
Here are some other examples of sex discrimination:
- Assuming that women aren't fit for certain jobs, such as positions that require heavy physical labor, frequent travel, or technical prowess.
- Requiring women to conform to gender-based stereotypes about appearance or behavior.
- Refusing to hire or promote women who have children, while promoting and hiring men who have children (this is referred to as the “sex plus” theory).
- Offering lesser benefits to women.
- Requiring pregnant women to take leave when they are willing and able to do their jobs.
- Refusing to hire or retain pregnant women, based on the belief that they will not want to return to work after having a child.
- Paying women less than men who do the same jobs.
- Failing to promote women into the highest positions at a company (this is called the "glass ceiling" theory of discrimination).
Sexual Stereotyping
Many sex discrimination cases allege that an employer held men and women to different standards based on sexist assumptions about the abilities or desires of the sexes, or based on historic or traditional gender roles. For example, a manager might fire pregnant employees because he believes women should stay at home with their children. Women might be relegated to lower paying customer service positions because their boss believes that women communicate better and are more empathetic than men. Or, a company might refuse to hire a female CEO, believing that customers, competitors, and the public won't take her as seriously as they would a man.
Asserting Your Rights
If you believe you have been subjected to sex discrimination, you should first raise the issue internally with your company's HR department. Find out how you can make a complaint, and follow that procedure carefully. If the company doesn't take any action to resolve the problem, or if you have been fired and are no longer in the workplace to make a complaint, you may want to meet with a lawyer to discuss your options.
A lawyer can assess the facts of your situation and help you decide what to do. For example, the lawyer might help you negotiate a settlement with your employer that includes severance or changes in the workplace that will remedy the discrimination. Or, the lawyer can file a charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (a legal prerequisite for filing a lawsuit) and monitor the agency's investigation of your complaint. If all else fails, the lawyer can file a sex discrimination lawsuit.
