Additional Case 3.1
You have been hired as HR Director of a company with about 100 employees. As you begin to learn about the company, you discover that female managers are paid about 20% less than their male counterparts. When you ask why, the CEO explains that men have families to support and women are earning extra income. As you review personnel files, it becomes apparent that protected-class employees are promoted less often and have longer terms between promotions and raises than white employees. A test is used as part of the promotion process, and protected-class candidates always do about 25% worse on it than white candidates. Another test is used to screen job applicants. It screens out about 25% of white male applicants and about 50% of protected-class applicants.
The firm has a hazardous products division. Traditionally, women are not hired or promoted into that division because the CEO is concerned that the toxic nature of the production process will adversely affect the female employees' reproductive processes.
-Refer to Additional Case 3.1.For your company's recruiting test to pass the four-fifths rule,about ________ of employees would need to pass it.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The four-fifths rule states that the selection rate for any protected class group cannot be less than four-fifths (or 80%) of the selection rate for the group with the highest selection rate. In this case, the test screens out about 50% of protected-class applicants and 25% of white male applicants. Therefore, the selection rate for protected-class applicants is 50% ÷ 25% = 2. The selection rate for white male applicants is 1 (since they are the comparison group). To meet the four-fifths rule, the selection rate for protected-class applicants must be at least 80% of the selection rate for white male applicants. This means the selection rate for protected-class applicants must be at least 80% × 1 = 0.8. To find the pass rate for the recruiting test, we subtract the screening-out rate from 100%: 100% - 50% = 50% for protected-class applicants and 100% - 25% = 75% for white male applicants. Therefore, the required pass rate for the recruiting test for protected-class applicants is 80% × 75% = 60%.

Additional Case 3.1 You Have Been Hired as HR Director of a Company