What Every School Administrator Should Know about Equal Employment Opportunity Legislation

Abstract

Managers unfamiliar with both the basic provisions of equal employment opportunity (EEO) legislation and subsequent interpretations by the courts could find themselves entangled in endless difficulties. School administrators who nowadays are perceived as management specialists do not escape this predicament. The following information should help them avoid some of the obvious pitfalls. As the federal government's leading EEO law enforcement agency, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) enforces Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which was amended in 1972 to prohibit employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. The EEOC also enforces the Equal Pay Act (EPA) of 1963, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) of 1967, and federal prohibitions against discrimination against disabled persons. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 eliminates a former exemption for educational institutions, thus bringing teachers and professional and nonprofessional staff members within the act's coverage.