Deck 6: Employment Discrimination, Part II: Harassment and Employee Expression

Question 1

Which of the following may be considered in determining whether a sexually hostile environment exists?

A) The frequency of the offensive conduct
B) The severity of the offensive conduct
C) Whether the conduct unreasonably interferences with the employee's work performance
D) All of the above

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Which type of harassment best fits for an employee who accuses her employer of allowing others to make sexually explicit jokes and comments repeatedly in the workplace?

A) Quid pro quo sexual harassment
B) Same-sex sexual harassment
C) Hostile work environment
D) None of the above

Answer 2

C

Question 3

A country club manager withholds a pay raise for a golf pro because the golf pro would not engage in a sexual relationship with her. This is an example of which of the following?

A) Hostile environment sexual harassment
B) Quid pro quo sexual harassment
C) Disparate impact discrimination
D) Reverse discrimination

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Which of the following is the reason why a YMCA's activities director may not ignore the cultural differences of her employees related to ethnicity or religion?

A) The antidiscrimination laws are given greater weight in the context of recreational services
B) The Fourth Amendment protects her employees
C) Title IX protects her employees
D) Title VII protects her employees

Question 5

If a public school fires a coach who chooses to pray alone on the field immediately after the game, would they be in violation of the law?

A) Yes, this is a violation of his First Amendment and Title VII rights.
B) Yes, this is a violation of his First Amendment rights only.
C) Yes, this is a violation of his Title VII rights only.
D) No, there is no violation of his rights because he spoke as a public employee when kneeling on the field immediately after the game.

Question 6

A dress code will always violate an employee's right to freedom of expression.

Question 7

In order to have sexual harassment, there must be harassment directed to a member of the opposite sex present.

Question 8

Hostile environment harassment claims may be brought on the basis of religion along with race and sex.

Question 9

An employer is not responsible for harassment committed by the company's supervisors.

Question 10

Title VII includes employee protection from retaliation against their efforts to obtain justice due to alleged employment discrimination.

Question 11

Employees have protection for whistleblowing under Title VII only.

Question 12

Under Title VII, hostile environment harassment depends only on whether a reasonable person would find the environment hostile.

Question 13

The courts have defined two types of sexual harassment. Name those two types and provide a brief definition of each type.

Question 14

An employee accusing an employer of retaliation must prove a prima facie case by showing what steps?

Question 15

In Bowman v. Shawnee State University, the court determined that Bowman's sexual harassment claim failed because the harassment did not lead to a hostile work environment. Explain why this situation was not considered a hostile work environment. What does a plaintiff need to prove to establish a successful claim of a hostile work environment?