Answer
Business Law in Real World
The chosen article ‘Supreme Court hears arguments on employer liability for employee harassment’ published on 27th November 2012 deals with the aspect of employer liability in case of employee harassment (Zebley, 2012). In the particular article the author highlights on the hearing of the arguments on the part of US Supreme Court regarding two cases Vance v. Ball State University and Faragher v. City of Boca Raton and Burlington Industries, Inc. v. Ellerth.
As per the author of the article, in case of Vance v. Ball State University the court took evaluated the aspect if an employer can be held vicariously liable in case of harassment by superiors who regulate and manage the daily work the aggrieved party has to perform. According to the article, the court hearing in this case also determined whether the potential liability is limited to the individuals having the power of hiring and firing power (Zebley, 2012). Similarly in case of Faragher v. City of Boca Raton and Burlington Industries, Inc. v. Ellerth, the Supreme Court stated that an employer can be held vicariously liable for extreme workplace harassment by the superior to the aggrieved party.
In the context of the above discussed cases, it can be stated that Title Vll of the Civil Rights Act of 1962 is applicable in the above discussed cases (Eeoc.gov, 2017). According to the act an employer can be held vicariously liable in case of discriminatory conduct of an employee in case of substantial employment actions against the aggrieved party. Under the act, it is also essential on the part of the aggrieved party to establish that the actions would not have been performed against the aggrieved party in case of absence of discriminatory motive (LaForgia, 2013). Thus, on the application of the act, in the above discussed the defendant can be held vicariously liable.
References
Eeoc.gov. (2017). Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. [online] Available at: https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/statutes/titlevii.cfm [Accessed 25 Apr. 2017].
LaForgia, E. (2013). JURIST - Supreme Court narrows scope of Title VII for employment discrimination claims. [online] Jurist.org. Available at: https://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2013/06/supreme-court-narrows-scope-of-title-vii-for-employment-discrimination-claims.php [Accessed 25 Apr. 2017].
Zebley, J. (2012). JURIST - Supreme Court hears arguments on employer liability for employee harassment. [online] Jurist.org. Available at: https://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2012/11/supreme-court-hears-arguments-on-employer-liability-for-employee-harassment.php [Accessed 25 Apr. 2017].
Supreme Court hears arguments on employer liability for employee harassment- https://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2012/11/supreme-court-hears-arguments-on-employer-liability-for-employee-harassment.php
