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Define the importance of small business
The importance of small enterprise
Define the importance of small business
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According to the U.S. Census Bureau, nearly forty-seven percent of all businesses employ fewer than ten employees. Small business is a vitally imperative to our nation’s well-being. Small business is responsible for creating the majority of our new jobs, employing nearly half of the American’s private workforce, and providing half of our country’s private non-farm gross domestic product (SBA 2009). Regardless of your politics, since President Barack Obama took office in 2008, an immense degree of emphasis has been placed on small business. Some of the emphasis has been positive while other parts have been negative.
One of the principal differences in in the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) treatment of small businesses’
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versus large businesses is the application and coverage of the EEOC under the law. The size of a business is the prevalent factor in determining exposure and the protection the employees receive. Businesses with under 15 employees (and under 20 employees for age discrimination) are not covered the way the law is currently written (Get The Facts Series: Small Business Information, n.d.). It would seem implausible to allow discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, disability, or genetic information to receive a lower standard because of the business’s size. Small businesses are exempt from The Civil Rights Act of 1964. The exemptions came from concerns about placing an undue burden on small businesses. On August 13, 2002, President George W. Bush signed Executive Order 13272 that established the Regulatory Flexibility Procedure Act, which requires agencies when establishing rules the impact they will have on small businesses. The objective is to remove the excessive burden on small business and curtail economic impact (Regulatory Flexibility Act Procedures, n.d.). The most common argument concerning why small businesses receive a different treatment from the EEOC is that they lack the resources of large businesses. A small business owner cannot hire a Human Resources Manager or department just to monitor and enforce these EEOC standards and withholding the protections afforded to employees of a large business. The single employer doctrine refers counts all employees at all locations in deciding whether a business exempt or non-exempt from Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. Serial entrepreneurs with several businesses with less than fifteen employees at each aggregate all their employees together and thus the entrepreneur may be required to comply with Title VII (Robinson, Jackson, Franklin, & Clayton, 2010). The business owners often do not contemplate the larger picture and tend to focus on making profits and keeping the business running. They overlook situations that could shut down their business. Large companies that substantial training programs and large human resource departments tend to educate and inform their workforce about common workplace issues. Small to medium size businesses often overlook training of workforce-related issues and if they offer training at all, it tends to focus on job performance. However, if these small companies just spent a reasonable amount of money they could curtail their litigation exposure (Robinson, Jackson, Franklin, & Clayton, 2010). Small business owners have several exemptions due to their size and available resource. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which affects wages, overtime time, recordkeeping, and youth employment rule are applicable and enforceable on small business owners. According to Massey and Campbell (2013), one of the most common mistakes is thinking this rule does not apply to them. There are a few exceptions to the FLSA, but they tend to be extremely narrow. It is a piece of what the EEOC oversees; however, size is not a consideration in this case. Over the past decade, small businesses responsibilities as it relates to the EEOC, have been challenged even though they have different standards.
A precedent case changed the way several businesses handle EEOC grievances. In the case of Arbaugh v. Y&H Corp, a female employee brought a lawsuit against her former employer claiming she had been sexually harassed and a lower court jury found in favor of the employee and award her punitive and compensatory damages. The employer did not realize an exclusion from the Civil Rights Act of 1964 applied to the business due to the small number of employees on the payroll. The Supreme Court found that even though Y&H Corp. did not employ fifteen or more employee it did not preclude a federal district court from hearing the complaint. This case directly influences the relaxed rules related to the Civil Rights Act for smaller businesses. A component of the thought behind a different level of enforcement for small businesses is they cannot handle the monetary implications of higher standards. Since this case in 2006, employers routinely make the applicable enforcement agency aware they fall below the employee threshold and this has provided an enhanced level of protection (Gentry, Robinson, Dibrell, & Franklin, 2013). This has not mitigated the risk that the EEOC will find a small business has violated Title VII and the business owner must appear in court to provide evidence they are a covered employer. The Arbaugh case created
the opportunity for an employee to compel their employers to defend themselves in court; therefore litigation costs for potential lawsuits have increased.
One of the issues in the case EEOC v. Target Corp. is that the EEOC alleged that Target violated the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by engaging in race discrimination against African-American applicants who were interested in management positions. It is argued that Target did not give the opportunity to schedule an interview to plaintiffs, Kalisha White, Ralpheal Edgeston and Cherise Brown-Easley, because of racial discrimination. On the other hand, it argues that Target is in violation of the Act because the company failed to retain and present records that would determine if there was reason to believe that an unlawful practice had been committed.
Hamblett, M. (2004, August 26). 2nd Circuit: Impact of Employer Acts Grounds for Suit: Court rules on disparate impact theory of recovery. New York Law Journal. Retrieved April 4, 2005 from http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1090180422885
Facts of the Case: In 2008, Samantha Elauf applied for a job at Abercrombie & Fitch, Inc., who as part of their “Look Policy” prohibit the use of caps. Elauf, as part of her religious practice, wore a headscarf to the interview. She was interviewed by assistant manager Heather Cooke, who gave her a score that qualified her to be hired. Cooke, however, was worried that Elauf’s headscarf was against the store’s policy and called her district manager Randall Johnson. She informed Johnson of her belief that Elauf wore her headscarf because of her religion, and Johnson replied that headwear whether it was religious or not violated the “Look Policy” of the store. Elauf with the help of the EEOC sued Abercrombie on the grounds of religious discrimination. The U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is an agency established by the government of the United States that imposes federal laws that make it
"Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is the single most important piece of legislation that has helped to shape and define employment law rights in this country (Bennett-Alexander & Hartman, 2001)". Title VII prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, gender, disability, religion and national origin. However, it was racial discrimination that was the moving force of the law that created a whirlwind of a variety of discriminations to be amended into Title VII. Title VII was a striving section of legislation, an effort which had never been tried which made the passage of the law an extremely uneasy task. This paper will discuss the evolution of Title VII as well as the impact Title VII has had in the workforce.
Bennett, Alexander, Hartman (2003), Employment Law for Business, Fourth Edition II. Regulation of Discrimination in Employment 3. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, The McGraw-Hill Companies.
Disparate Impact arises when an employer's practices unintentionally excludes a protected class disproportionately (Player, Shoben and Lieberwitz, 1995). A "protected class" is a group of people, with common characteristics, which Congress has determined must be protected from inequality ("On-the-Job Discrimination: Gender Discrimination," 2004). This paper will analyze the landmark disparate impact case of Griggs v. Duke Power Co. (401 U.S. 424, 1971) from its beginning to its conclusion in the Supreme Court. Included will be the facts of the case and the issues detailed, as well as the history of the case from initial filing to final ruling.
In today’s world, the American still has barriers to overcome in the matter of racial equality. Whether it is being passed over for a promotion at the job or being underpaid, some people have to deal with unfair practice that would prevent someone of color or the opposite sex from having equal opportunity at the job. In 2004, Dukes vs. Wal-Mart Stores Incorporation was a civil rights class-action suite that ruled in favor of the women who worked and did not received promotions, pay and certain job assignments. This proves that some corporations ignore the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which protects workers from discrimination based on sex, race, religion or national origin.
Explain the connection between the economic model of corporate social responsibility and “free market” or “neoclassical” economic theory.
There are over 28 million small locally owned businesses in the United States and 70 % of these businesses are owned and operated by a single person. Owning a small business is not an easy task it takes hard work and dedication, Steve Jobs once said “you need a lot of passion for what you’re doing because it’s so hard”, people don’t realize
Schipani, C. (2013). Class Action Litigation After Dukes: In Search of a Remedy for Gender Discrimination in Employment. University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform, 46(4), 1249-1277.
The term “ethics” refers to an external set of rules that have been established by an institution or organization, for example, a university, and the members are expected to follow them. On the other hand, integrity refers to an individuals’ internal set of principles that guides their actions and behavior (Czimbal and Brooks n.p.). As a rule, people are usually rewarded when they follow ethical codes of conduct by an external committee or board that monitors their behavior. For a person of high integrity, the benefits are usually intrinsic. Moreover, such individuals always make the right decisions even when they are not being watched. Therefore, this feature of character is often influenced by a person’s upbringing. In
Harassment and discrimination can affect a business in many ways. Having a history of harassment and discrimination claims can damage a business’ reputation and affect its bottom line. It can cost the business current and future clients as well as investors and employees. Depending on the gravity of the claim(s), the process of settling the claim(s) can take anywhere from months to years. Meanwhile, the cost of the settlement and other fees continue to add up. A business might have to compensate the affected parties besides paying court fees and lawyers. The EEOC has seen a rise in monetary rewards from 7.5 million to 24.3 million (Glazer, 1996) However, all of these can be avoided by properly educating employers and employees about their rights and what harassment and discrimination entails.
Small businesses have been considered the mainstay in countries around the world. In many European countries for example, the small business has been considered crucial to the success and flourishment of the country in general. Most individuals start upon a small business venture in the hopes of realizing ownership, independent profits and personal success. Small businesses can prove extremely successful when planned properly. Studies suggest that several small businesses, however, close or fail within the first few years of operation. This failure suggests that a majority of small business owners may not have as yet realized the crucial success factors necessary for successful implementation of a small business.
In addition to pursuing optimal balance between the three P’s, companies have a duty to ensure that the current quality of life can be guaranteed for future generations as well. This is emphasized by the fact that sustainability is at the core of Corporate Social
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employers from discriminating against applicants and employees because of their race, color, religion, sex or national origin. Religious Discrimination as part of the Civil Rights Act is the subject of this term paper.