Workplace Discrimination: Huffman Trucking

Essay by deezel71University, Bachelor'sA+, June 2007

download word file, 3 pages 5.0

Huffman Trucking is a national trucking company that employs 1,400 employees in four different cities. Of the 1,400 employees, there are 925 drivers and 425 support personnel. Individuals in the trucking industry can potentially face many various forms of discrimination when applying for jobs with trucking firms or while on the job once hired. The human resources team must be knowledgeable in respect to discriminatory practices and develop workplace policies to prevent discrimination from occurring between both the company and its employees.

Discrimination in the workplace, stereotyping individuals, and equal opportunity employment are just a few of the challenges Huffman Trucking employees could face in the workplace. Failing to prevent discrimination within an organization can cause employees to seek legal recourse against the company. When a company has a diverse employee base, recognizing and acknowledging that diverseness in the workforce is crucial and steps need to be taken to prevent discriminatory practices.

Diversity in the workforce is comprised of key demographic differences among employees within an organization, including age, physical ability, type of occupation, and gender (Schermerhorn, Hunt, & Osborn, 2005).

In 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law. The "ADA law prohibits employment discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities in regard to job application procedures, hiring, compensation, training, promotion, and termination." (Cheeseman, 2004). Huffman Trucking must ensure their employment policies provide reasonable accommodations for both their drivers and support personnel. The accommodations must be made as long as they are considered reasonable and do not impose an undue burden on the company.

Age discrimination is another type of discrimination individuals could face with the company. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) was passed in 1967 and prohibits employers from discriminatory employment decisions directly relating to the age of an individual. (Cheeseman, 2004). Having bias...