Human Resource Blog

Title VII Basics

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My boss keeps telling us that we all need to review Title VII more so that we can be better HR representatives. I think I understand what it is, but can you review the important parts?

Sure. Understanding Title VII will certainly help you to be a better HR representative. You will not only understand some of the issues that many of your employees face (if you do not already), but you all also be in a position to speak with them about the laws and organizations that affect them.

Title VII is a federal document that is in place in order to protect the rights of workers. The law states that employers may not discriminate against an employee or potential employee based on race, national origin, religious affiliation, gender, national origin or age. Title VII also protects employees from sexual discrimination and from pregnancy discrimination.

Title VII is also protected by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), which is a national organization that will act as an advocate for employees that feel they have been wronged and will help to enforce the labor laws within companies.

Title VII does not apply to all companies. In fact, it only applies to companies with 15 or more employees. However, it does apply to companies across the U.S. Each of those 15 employees needs to work for at least 20 weeks of the preceding year in order to qualify the company.

One of the toughest things for a company to enforce with regards to Title VII is discrimination from one employee to another. As such, as an HR representative, you are responsible for communicating the terms of Title VII to your employees in order to help them understand what discrimination is and why it is illegal. They should be aware that harassment and discrimination are both punishable by the company. Most HR departments have training sessions for employees as well as posters and regular memos so that all employees have the same access to information about laws and company policies that affect them.