Human Resource Blog

Race Discrimination in South Carolina

	Benefits
Total Compensation Summary Performance Improvement Plan Performance Appraisal and Review Employee Payroll Status/Change Form Employee Change Form

	Compensation
Employee Payroll Action Form W-4 Employee Withholding Allowance Cert. Employee Payroll Status/Change Form Direct Deposit Form Total Compensation Summary

	Employment Training
Employee Warning Notice Employee Counseling Report Performance Improvement Plan Forklift Safety Kit

	Hiring and Staffing
Complete Business Forms Kit CD Form I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification Employment Application Long Form Substance Testing Consent Form Pre-Employment Reference and Background Check Employment Offer/Acknowledgment Receipt of Employee Handbook New Hire Survey

	HR Management
Confidential Employee Folder Confidential Employee Medical Folder Job File Worksheet Folder Daily EEO Applicant Flow Log Workplace Information Sheets Request to Inspect Personnel Files

	Labor Laws
Complete State & Federal Labor Law Posters 1 Year Compliance Protection Plan State ONLY Labor Law Posters Federal Labor Law Posters

	Management/Leadership
Complete Harassment Forms FMLA Administrator Kit Harassment Prevention Kit Sexual Harassment Kit Workplace Information Sheets

	Performance Management
Performance Appraisal Review Employee Performance Evaluation Form Performance Improvement Plan Employee Warning Notice Employee Counseling Report Employee Final Warning Notice

	Structural Development
Workplace Information Sheets Complete Business Forms Kit CD FMLA Administrator Worksheet FMLA Administrator Kit USERRA Employee Handout Packet The USERRA Easy Comply Set

	Workplace Management
Attendance Organizer for 2008, 2009, or 2010 Employee Warning Notice Employee Counseling Report Performance Improvement Plan Employee Performance Evaluation Form Employee Final Warning Notice Separation Checklist Harassment Prevention Kit

What do you think of our

South Carolina company’s policy of assigning black managers only to retail locations in predominantly black areas. Is this discrimination, or common sense?

While it may on the surface seem like common sense it is discrimination, according to the law. The law is the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title VII, which prohibits discrimination in hiring and promotion based on color, race, national origin, religion, or sex.

To management it may seem that an African-American manager would relate better to customers in a neighborhood that is primarily black, but the law says it is discrimination, and a recent lawsuit appears to bear that out.

The lawsuit was brought by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) against Walgreen. The EEOC is the enforcement arm of the Civil Rights Act.

Walgreen is the nation’s largest drugstore chain, and African-American pharmacists and managers there charged discrimination. They argued that they were only being promoted to positions in black neighborhoods. As a result, they said, they often found themselves in stores that are described as “underperforming.” And that means, they argued, that their chances for greater earnings, as well as other opportunities, were limited, compared to similar employees of other races.

Walgreen, opting against admitting wrongdoing and choosing not to fight a long and expensive court battle, settled out of court.

The suit had originally been brought by EEOC on the managers’ behalf in stores in St. Louis, Kansas City, Detroit, and Tampa. But once it was converted to a class action suit, it quickly became nationwide.

The out-of-court settlement cost Walgreen $20 million. The money was divided among 10,000 employees around the country, both former and current workers.

The law requires that you must consider all qualified applicants and hire or promote based on qualification, not skin color.                                                                                      

Title VII applies not only to discrimination in hiring and promotion but to discharge, pay, classification, referral, and job training. It also declares it illegal to discriminate in benefits to employees. That includes health insurance, discounts, time off, and the like.

And most important to this question, it includes transferring managers from store to store.

Title VII has been expanded by Executive Order 11246, which includes protections for employees of contractors and sub-contractors on federal projects.