Description

MGT/434

You need to answer 5 of the following 15 questions (including sub-questions, if any)

with complete responses (there is no minimum word count) you will need to number

your responses with the corresponding number below. Please double-check your

submission to ensure you have responded to 5 questions with proper citation and no

plagiarism.

1. Davis had been deaf since birth. She applied for a clerk position at the

Postal Service. The Postal Service denied her application because she would not be

able to answer the telephones, one of the duties of the position. It contended that

asking other hearing clerks to take on Davis' telephone duties would lower employee

morale and cause bitterness and dissension. In addition, it claimed that it would be

inconvenient to other employees who would need to communicate with someone in the

desired position. Is the Postal Service’s claim sufficient to satisfy the undue hardship

defense?

2. Can a government employee state a claim for a violation of the

constitutional right to privacy when she was required, as a job applicant, to sign an

affidavit stating that she had not used tobacco products for one year prior to the

application date?

3. An over-forty employee of the New York Transit Authority is denied a

promotion to station supervisor after he refuses to submit to an electrocardiogram

(EKG) as part of a physical. The NYTA required the physical, and therefore the EKG’s,

for all supervisory position candidates who were under forty and who had problematic

medical histories, as well all candidates over forty. The NYTA contended that the

examination and test were necessary because of the physical demands of the position.

It also argued that people over forty have an increased risk of heart disease, hence the

EKG requirement. How would you determine whether this employee should be required

to undergo the test?

4. A construction company was sued for harassment when it failed to take

seriously the complaints about offensive graffiti scrawled on rented portable toilets. The

employer defended by saying (1) employees should be used to such rude and crude

behavior; (2) the employer did not own or maintain the equipment, which came with

graffiti already on it; (3) it took action after a formal employee complaint; and (4) the

graffiti insulted everyone. Will the defenses be successful? Why or why not?

5. At the end of all her written communications, an employee writes, “have a

blessed day.” One of employer’s most important clients requests that employee not do

so, and employer asks employee to stop. Employee refuses, saying it is a part of her

religion. If employee sues the employer for religious discrimination, then is she likely to

win? Why or why not?

6. Day Care Center has a policy stating that no employee can be over 5’ 4” tall

because the employer thinks children feel more comfortable with people who are closer

to them in size. Does Tiffany, who is 5’7”, have a claim? If so, under what theory could

she proceed?

7. Betsy was an employee in a bank’s Demand Services Department. She suffered

from dysthymia, a form of depression, along with phobia and bouts of more intense

depression. Over several years, she was absent from work on a relatively frequent

basis. The employer discharged her after continuing absences following two periods of

probation for absences from work. She was discharged the day after she had called in

that she would be absent because of “depression again.” Should Betsy’s condition be

considered a “disability?” If so, what, if any, accommodations could have been made for

Betsy? Do you believe her discharge violates the ADA?

8. Fifty-four year old Benjamin worked for Caterpillar, Inc. After a series of

management changes and actions that Benjamin claims made him feel undermined, he

retired and filed an age discrimination suit against Caterpillar. The individual who took

over Benjamin’s responsibilities was only five years younger than he was at the time. Is

this sufficient to show that they treated this replacement employee more favorably as

evidence of age discrimination?

9. A prominent black professor takes an unpaid leave of absence to protest

the fact that his extremely prominent university has failed to ever hire any black females

in tenure-track (regular, permanent) positions on the faculty. When he does not return

after two years, he is terminated. He sues the university, alleging constructive

discharge, in that the situation created by the school’s policies made it an unlivable

situation for him. Is this an effective argument?

 Explain.

10. An employer is found by a court to have discriminated. As part of an

appropriate remedy, employer is ordered to promote one female for every male that is

promoted, until the desired goal is met. Male employees who were next in line for

promotions sue the employer alleging reverse discrimination in that the new promotees

are being hired on the basis of gender, and the suing employees are being harmed

because of their gender. Who wins and why?

11. Marge and Herman, two employees, are having a relationship, and it later

turns sour. When Marge does not get the promotion she applies for, she sues the

employer for sexual harassment, alleging it was committed by her ex-boyfriend,

Herman, who has, since their breakup, left Marge alone. Will Marge win her suit?