Justifying Age Discrimination

The characteristics of age discrimination as provided for inthe Employment Equality (Age) Discrimination Regulations setit apart from existing anti-discrimination schemes. The ambitof the Regulations is limited to the employment field. Withinthis area, the legislation does not simply seek to identifya characteristic of a specific minority group and then removethat factor from the decision-making process. Instead, workingfrom a quality common to all (age), the Regulations seek onlyto prevent reliance on it for purposes that are ‘illegitimate’or if the consequences of doing so are ‘disproportionate’.This is necessary: first because the Regulations do not seekmerely to protect discrete age groups, and in practice the interestsof persons of different age may well be in conflict; secondlybecause many decision-making criteria that appear objectiveare in substance, age-related. In order to sort ‘bad’discrimination from ‘good’ discrimination a notionof substantive equality must exist. The Regulations themselvesgive little indication of what equality should mean. There isno existing consensus from which the answer can be drawn, andthe rationales that have underpinned previous anti-discriminationlegislation are not easily transposed to age discrimination.The practical application of the justification defence containedin Regulation 3 will shape the substantive meaning of equalityin this area. This article seeks to identify what the properapproach should be to the provisions of Regulation 3, and suggeststhat this should be derived from considerations of transparentdecision-making, and the need to respect the dignity of theindividual.     

Age, Retirement and the Employment Contract

This essay examines the contractual analysis of retirement andthe potential influence of past judicial approaches in the newera of statutory prohibition on age discrimination.     

我国就业中年龄歧视的实证研究——以1995～2005年上海和成都两市30万份招聘广告为例

就业中的年龄不属被劳动法禁止的歧视种类。据对1995年我国《劳动法》施行到2005年这11年期间30万份报刊广告招聘条件的统计,用人单位录用劳动者主要集中在35岁以下,40岁以上普遍受到用人单位的差别排斥。年龄歧视成为劳动法规定的平等就业与现实差距最大的一个现象。用人单位对劳动者实行不合理的年龄差别,严重限制、剥夺并影响到劳动者平等就业权利的实现。消除这个普遍的、严重的歧视种类:一方面可以在制定劳动就业促进法中增加禁止年龄歧视的种类,另一方面可以考虑在制定反歧视法中明确把年龄歧视作为法律禁止的歧视类型。     

Employment discrimination: age discrimination and sexual harassment

This is the era of deregulation—and yet in U.S. labor markets, at least, the legal regulation of the employment relation has been expanding in recent decades. The laws have been stiffened and their enforcement, mainly through private lawsuits, has been beefed up. Currently the two most important areas, in terms of impact on employers, are age discrimination and sexual harassment, and these will be my focus.     

Employment discrimination: procedures for handling complaints--Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Proposed rule

This proposed rule sets forth procedures for the handling of complaints of employment discrimination which are filed with Federal fund granting agencies under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and other provisions of Federal law which prohibit discrimination on grounds of race, color, religion, age, sex or national origin in programs or activities receiving Federal financial assistance. The regulations allow the fund granting agency to refer complaints to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). For complaints covered both by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, or other statutes within EEOC's jurisdiction and by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act or Title IX, the regulations contemplate that most complaints of individual acts of discrimination will be referred to EEOC for investigation and conciliation, while most complaints of systemic discrimination will be retained by the fund granting agency. Employment discrimination complaints which are not covered by Title VI or Title IX will be transferred to EEOC. This proposed rule is not a "major rule" as defined by Section 1(b) of Executive Order 12291.     

禁止就业歧视的"人本"之维

禁止就业歧视的"人本"价值在于:实现人的生存权和发展权,维护人格尊严、实现正义,维护人类共同利益、实现社会和谐。我国禁止就业歧视的法律较好地体现了"人本"精神,但也有一些不足,应当加以完善。     

Are Older Workers Past Their Sell‐by‐Date? A View from UK Age Discrimination Law

This article assesses the effectiveness of United Kingdom age discrimination law in protecting older workers from claims that they are less productive and perform more poorly than younger workers. The article assesses employer perceptions and the incompatibility of such perceptions with existing research and the current interpretation of age discrimination law by the CJEU and the Supreme Court which accords with such research. The effectiveness of age discrimination law in practice is assessed through an analysis of existing compensation reduction rules. The article concludes that the existing rules which allow for a reduction in compensation payable where there is a chance that the same outcome would have been reached in the absence of discrimination (the ‘chance model’) reduces the effectiveness of the existing protections. A move to a ‘certainty model’ would be less speculative, would serve the objectives of anti‐discrimination law and would reduce concerns about compatibility with EU law.     

英国反就业歧视制度及实践研究

英国习惯法并不禁止歧视行为,但随着英国加入各种国际组织及国内平权运动的高涨,在20世纪70年代后,英国对于禁止性别、残疾、年龄等制定了大量的法律。当前英国反就业歧视的法律渊源主要包括:欧盟立法和专门性法律。这些法律中就有关就业歧视的违法行为进行了详尽和周密的规定,包括直接歧视、间接歧视、骚扰和受害等四种歧视形态,禁止在雇佣关系中各个阶段的任何歧视。为了有效地防止就业歧视,英国依据《平等法》成立了人权与平等机会委员会。平等机会委员会在应对英国社会中相对突出的就业歧视问题扮演了重要角色。     

The Relationship of Chronological Age, Age at Injury, and Duration of Injury to Employment Status in Individuals with Spinal Cord Injury

Employment status following spinal cord injury (SCI) has important implications for financial and psychosocial well-being. Several age-related variables-in particular chronological age, duration of SCI, and age at SCI onset-have been identified as being associated with employment among individuals with SCI. Cross-sectional investigations of this topic are complicated by methodological and statistical issues associated with aging and disability. The purpose of the current study was to examine the associations between three aging variables and employment status in individuals with SCI through a series of regression analyses. Six hundred twenty individuals with SCI completed a survey that included measures of demographic characteristics, pain, psychological functioning, physical functioning, fatigue, and sleep. The results indicated that chronological age and age at SCI onset were significant predictors of employment status. A significantly greater proportion of individuals aged 45-54 were employed compared to those aged 55-64 even after controlling for biopsychosocial variables. Additionally, there was a negative linear relationship between percent employed and age at SCI onset, and this relationship was not accounted for by the biopsychosocial variables. The analyses used in this study provide one method by which to disentangle the effects of different age-related variables on important SCI outcomes in cross-sectional research. Continued research in this area is needed to better understand age-related effects on employment status, which could be used to help maximize the quality of life in individuals with SCI.     

Affirmative Action in Women's Employment: Lessons from Canada

The use of affirmative action to increase women's representation in employment is recognized under European Community law. The European Court of Justice has identified affirmative action permissible under EC law and what constitutes reverse discrimination, deemed incompatible with the equal treatment principle. Despite these developments, gendered occupational segregation — vertical and horizontal — persists in all member states as evidenced by enduring pay gaps. It is widely argued that we now need national measures which take advantage of the appropriate framework and requisite political will which exists at the European level. Faced with a similar challenge, the Canadian government passed the Employment Equity Act 1986 which places an obligation on federal employers to implement employment equity (affirmative action) by proactive means. Although subject to some criticism, there have been some improvements in women's representation since its introduction. This article assesses what lessons might be learned from Canada's experience.     

An Analysis of the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006

This article analyses the Transfer of Undertakings (Protectionof Employment) (TUPE) Regulations 2006, which revoke, entirely,the TUPE Regulations 1981. As well as comprising the UK Government’sresponse to the amending Acquired Rights Directive 1998/50/EC,they purport to fulfil a four-fold aim of increasing the coverageof TUPE in outsourcing situations; clarifying the law on transferconnected dismissals and when employees may agree transfer relatedchanges to employment conditions; providing for the supply bytransferors of employee liability information; and relaxingthe provisions of TUPE in insolvency situations to the extentpermitted by the Acquired Rights Directive 2001/23/EC. It isto be argued that some of these aims are realised in the newRegulations, and others not. And certain areas worthy of newregulation are ignored. What is ultimately apparent howeveris that the new Regulations cannot be taken to be an ‘employers’charter’. In some instances the new Regulations may breathenew life (and litigation) into the law.     

Self-Reported and Official Offending from Age 10 to Age 56

In the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development, over 400 London males have been followed up from age 8 to age 48 in face-to-face interviews and up to age 56 in criminal records. About 42 % of the males were convicted up to age 56. During five age ranges up to age 47, 94 % of the males admitted at least one of eight offenses, in comparison with 31 % who were convicted for at least one of these offenses in these age ranges. The prevalence of offending, and the number of offenses committed, decreased steadily after age 18 according to both convictions and self-reports. On average, there were 38 self-reported offenses per conviction, and this ratio also decreased with age. Convicted males self-reported 25 offenses per conviction on average. It is concluded that the “scaling-up factor” from convictions to self-reported offenses is very important, especially in evaluating the effectiveness of intervention programs.     

What Happened in Hazelwood: Statistics, Employment Discrimination, and the 80% Rule

Tests of statistical significance have increasingly been used in employment discrimination cases since the Supreme Court's decision in Hazelwood. In that case, the United States Supreme Court ruled that "in a proper case" statistical evidence can suffice for a prima facie showing of employment discrimination. The Court also discussed the use of a binomial significance test to assess whether the difference between the proportion of black teachers employed by the Hazelwood School District and the proportion of black teachers in the relevant labor market was substantial enough to indicate discrimination. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has proposed a somewhat stricter standard for evaluating how substantial a difference must be to constitute evidence of discrimination. Under the so-called 80% rule promulgated by the EEOC, the difference must not only be statistically significant, but the hire rate for the allegedly discriminated group must also be less than 80% of the rate for the favored group. This article argues that a binomial statistical significance test standing alone is unsatisfactory for evaluating allegations of discrimination because many of the assumptions on which such tests are based are inapplicable to employment settings; the 80% rule is a more appropriate standard for evaluating whether a difference in hire rates should be treated as a prima facie showing of discrimination.     

反就业歧视的法律思考

作为国际社会的重要成员,我国批准、加入了一系列禁止歧视的国际公约,但由于种种原因,就业歧视已成为我国当前一个突出的社会问题。解决这一问题,除了传统观念的更新、相关制度的变革外,主要还得从法律制度上着手,借鉴国际反歧视立法之成功经验,构建适合中国国情的反就业歧视法律制度。     

反就业歧视及其法律建构

就业歧视是一个世界性难题,它在我国有愈演愈烈之势,并正日益成为妨害我国市场经济健康发展和建构社会主义和谐社会的消极因素,亟待我们采取相应的制度措施进行规范和干预。针对就业歧视的现状,我国应当完善反就业歧视法。     

Age Discrimination Law in a Country with a Communist History: The Example of Poland

Abstract:  This article offers an overview of the legal responses to age discrimination in Poland. It explores the system of legal protection before the accession of Poland to the European Union, and looks too at the situation after the implementation of Council Directive 2000/78/EC. It argues that Community law has enhanced protection against age discrimination significantly, but that legislation remains far from perfect, and that the effective eradication of this form of discrimination in Poland is impeded by a range of difficulties typically found in countries with a Communist past.     

平等是一门科学——就业歧视法律控制的比较研究

世界上有代表性的几个国家反就业歧视的理论和经验,显示了不同国家在就业平等领域的宪法、立法、行政和司法等诸多方面的努力,其经验和教训足以为解决中国目前普遍存在的形形色色的就业歧视提供有益的借鉴和启示。本文表明,平等不仅是一种崇高的理念,更是一门实实在在的学问。运用在就业领域,各国宪法和立法上的平等原则纠正了职场上五花八门、许许多多的不合理和不公正的歧视。事实上,各国法院所发展出来的鉴别歧视的方法是大同小异的。它们共同构成了一套探测和扫除就业歧视的工具库,帮助我们远离愚昧和偏见,造就一个更为理性、公平和高效的社会。     

论平等就业权的界定

平等就业权在西方的实践路线主要是禁止就业歧视和推行平等就业政策,受各国不同文化和"意思场域"的影响,平等就业权很难在西方语境中探究其直接而完整的概念支撑体系。在我国,当平等就业权研究还未达成共识的时候,创设制度层面的反就业歧视法制,无疑是非常困难的;保护平等就业权一般被简单地解读为禁止就业歧视。由于平等就业权具有保障生存权的积极功能和价值承载,回归其本来的面目,具有正本清源的作用;平等就业权的界定是重构其理论体系的基本前提。平等就业权准确界定的关键,是依法规制平等就业权与用工自主权之间的界限。     

试论就业歧视及其公法规制

就业歧视既是经济问题、社会问题,更是法律问题。当前我国普遍存在的就业歧视问题之根源在于市场经济条件下用人单位效益至上价值原则与劳动者平等就业价值理念两者之间的难以趋同,是当今法律面对的一种尴尬。国家对单位用人自主权进行公法意义上的规制是社会本位理念下的现代劳动法发展趋势之所在,制定反就业歧视法应作为完善劳动立法的一个重要方面。通过立法进一步明确平等就业的权利保障机制和违法救济措施,以期消除就业歧视、引导和推动我国劳动就业市场健康向前发展。     

Positive Action for Women in Employment: Time to Align with Europe?

In recent years positive action to improve women's position in the labour market has risen up the political agenda, with measures ranging from quotas to special training. The legal framework has been slower to change. Initially seeking to eliminate all forms of discrimination, it now reflects a more sophisticated approach, attempting to achieve substantive equality. This may encompass measures which appear to disadvantage men but are aimed at rectifying women's structural, economic or historical disadvantage. We investigate the limits imposed on EU member states' ability to take positive action under Community law, and examine the much narrower provisions of the Sex Discrimination Act. We argue that the time is now ripe, with the ongoing review of equality law, to reappraise domestic law and to use the freedom provided under Community law to expand the scope of positive action under the Sex Discrimination Act.