Federal and state employment laws have developed because of actions professed as inappropriate practices by employers. Federal employment law provides legal protection for human rights issues regarding age, equal pay, disability, retirement, medical care, gender, and racial preference by businesses employing 15 or more people in the United States (FindLaw, 2006). Some state employment laws mirror Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 or may expand federal statutes concerning human rights acts such as the employment at will statute (Bennett-Alexander & Hartman, 2004).
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act is a statute created to provide legal recourse against employers who discriminate against "persons based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin" (FindLaw, 2006, Federal Laws and the Workplace - FAQ, p. 1, 1). People who have the determination to challenge an employers' action contact the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to submit a complaint. Persons of age 40 years or older are protected by the Age Discrimination in Employee Act (ADEA), while state laws may expand the statute, such as in Oregon where persons 18 years of age and up are protected by the same law (FindLaw, 2006, Federal Laws and the Workplace - FAQ, p.
President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the 1964 Civil R...
Sonny Cornelius, official portrait from .
English: William H. Brown, chairman of EEOC1, 3). In California, the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) applies to employers of five or more people, and includes discrimination violations concerning marital and familial status (PLRI, 2004).
Individuals with physical and mental disabilities are protected by Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act for persons with medical conditions or substantial limitations that an employer may perceive limits able activities (FindLaw, 2006, Federal Laws and the Workplace - FAQ, 4-9). Qualified potential, existing, or terminated employees with disability impairment have legal support by the ADA concerning "job application procedures, hiring, firing, advancement compensation,