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how did the civil rights act of 1991 amend the original civil rights act of 1964

by Mrs. Courtney Mitchell Published 3 years ago Updated 2 years ago

By the time the 1991 Act was passed, both allowed for an award of attorneys' fees. The 1991 Act expanded the remedies available to victims of discrimination by amending Title VII of the 1964 Act. Background Congress had amended Title VII once before, in 1972, when it broadened the coverage of the Act.

It added provisions to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protections expanding the rights of women to sue and collect compensatory and punitive damages for sexual discrimination or harassment.

Full Answer

What were the key provisions of the Civil Rights Act of 1964?

Overview

  • The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was the most comprehensive civil rights legislation ever enacted by Congress. It contained extensive measures to dismantle Jim Crow segregation and combat racial discrimination.
  • The Voting Rights Act of 1965 removed barriers to black enfranchisement in the South, banning poll taxes, literacy tests, and other measures that effectively prevented African Americans from voting.
  • Segregationists attempted to prevent the implementation of federal civil rights legislation at the local level.

What was the purpose of the 1964 Civil Right Act?

Civil Rights Act, comprehensive U.S. legislation enacted in 1964 that was intended to end discrimination based on race, color, religion, or national origin. It is often called the most important U.S. law on civil rights since Reconstruction (1865–77) and is a hallmark of the American civil rights movement.

What was true about the Civil Rights Act of 1964?

Under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, segregation on the grounds of race, religion or national origin was banned at all places of public accommodation, including courthouses, parks, restaurants, theaters, sports arenas and hotels. No longer could Black people and other minorities be denied service simply based on the color of their skin.

What was the main purpose of the Civil Rights Act of 1964?

Civil Rights Act of 1964 The Civil Rights Act of 1964 outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. This legislation was initially proposed by President John F. Kennedy in 1963.

What did the Civil Rights Act of 1991 amend?

The Civil Rights Act of 1991 eliminates the two-to-three-year statute of limitations for cases under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA). The suit-filing requirement for ADEA would now be the same as Title VII, which in turn would require the EEOC to provide notice to the charging parties as well.

What is the difference between the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and 1991?

Like the 1964 landmark, the 1991 act prohibits all discrimination in employment based on race, gender, color, religious, or ethnic considerations. The 1991 CRA amended the 1964 law —it did not replace it—in an attempt to strengthen the earlier law, especially in the realm of employer liability and the burden of proof.

What changes did the Civil Rights Act of 1964 bring?

Provisions of this civil rights act forbade discrimination on the basis of sex, as well as, race in hiring, promoting, and firing. The Act prohibited discrimination in public accommodations and federally funded programs. It also strengthened the enforcement of voting rights and the desegregation of schools.

How has the Civil Rights Act of 1964 redefined and the impact on the future of the civil rights movement?

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 hastened the end of legal Jim Crow. It secured African Americans equal access to restaurants, transportation, and other public facilities. It enabled blacks, women, and other minorities to break down barriers in the workplace.

In what way did the Civil Rights Act of 1991 amend Title VII of the civil rights Acts of 1964?

It added provisions to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protections expanding the rights of women to sue and collect compensatory and punitive damages for sexual discrimination or harassment.

Was the Civil Rights Act of 1964 amended?

88-352, July 2, 1964, 78 Stat. 241, as amended, known as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which is classified principally to subchapters II to IX of this chapter (Sec. 2000a et seq.).

How did the civil rights movement change?

The civil rights movement was an empowering yet precarious time for Black Americans. The efforts of civil rights activists and countless protesters of all races brought about legislation to end segregation, Black voter suppression and discriminatory employment and housing practices.

How did the civil rights movement change over time?

The Civil Rights Movement began to change after 1965. Some African Americans began to reject the calls for non-violent protests. These people wanted changes to occur much more quickly. They demanded action now, rather than the slower changes that usually came from peaceful demonstrations.

What changed after the civil rights movement?

In African-American history, the post–civil rights era is defined as the time period in the United States since Congressional passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Housing Act of 1968, major federal legislation that ended legal segregation, gained federal oversight and ...

What impact did the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the civil Voting Rights Act of 1965 have on America?

It contained extensive measures to dismantle Jim Crow segregation and combat racial discrimination. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 removed barriers to black enfranchisement in the South, banning poll taxes, literacy tests, and other measures that effectively prevented African Americans from voting.

What was the impact of the Civil Rights Act of 1968?

The 1968 Act expanded on previous acts and prohibited discrimination concerning the sale, rental, and financing of housing based on race, religion, national origin, sex, (and as amended) handicap and family status.

How did the Civil Rights Act of 1964 affect racial segregation at public colleges and universities?

Title IV of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination in public schools because of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Public schools include elementary schools, secondary schools and public colleges and universities.

How did the Civil Rights Act of 1991 help?

The Act aided in stopping obvious sexual harassment in work environments too . Given these views on the Civil Rights Act of 1991, it is clear that lawmakers had an intent to dispel employment discrimination and there has not, at least at this point, been any worse-case situations resulting from the Act’s passage.

What was the Civil Rights Act of 1964?

Civil Rights Act of 1964. The 1964 CRA prohibited workplace discrimination based on religion, sex, color, and also on national origin. The legislation did not enable damages or compensation, other than retroactive pay or similar, that the injured party could collect.

Why did the CRA come into effect?

The new CRA was largely in response to a 1989 decision of the Supreme Court that diminished workers’ ability to sue employers for discriminatory reasons. The 1991 legislation not only brought back some of this capability for employees but also added new methods of suing employers. For these reasons, many people view the Civil Rights Act ...

What is the new CRA?

The new legislation also: Modified some basic procedural and substantive rights under federal law in the area of employment discrimination. The new CRA was largely in response to a 1989 decision of the Supreme Court that diminished workers’ ability to sue employers for discriminatory reasons.

How many civil rights cases were filed in 1998?

Over 42,000 complaints of civil rights violations had been filed in U.S. District Courts in 1998, which was a whopping 125 percent increase from 1990. In comparison, noncivil rights cases rose by under 8 percent. Of the increase in civil rights lawsuits, two-thirds of them were in employment discrimination.

When did race and gender become employment factors?

When the Civil Rights Act of 1964 passed , it still allowed race and gender to be employment factors, so long as color, gender and religious attributes were proven not to have played a role. With the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1991, however, any discriminatory consideration was illegal in employment activities, whether or not the case could be proven for it not causing harm to the plaintiff. But, while the new CRA punishes for discriminatory employment practices, discrimination lawsuits are rarely straightforward.

What was the 1991 Act?

While the 1991 Act was an amendment of the 1964 law, it did not replace it. Instead, the Civil Rights Act (CRA) of 1991 strengthened the previous law, particularly in terms of the liability on employers and the burden of proof. The new legislation also:

What was the Civil Rights Act of 1991?

The Civil Rights Act of 1991 is a United States labor law, passed in response to United States Supreme Court decisions that limited the rights of employees who had sued their employers for discrimination.

What was the 1991 Act?

By the time the 1991 Act was passed, both allowed for an award of attorneys' fees. The 1991 Act expanded the remedies available to victims of discrimination by amending Title VII of the 1964 Act.

What was Johnson Controls' fetal protection policy?

had released a fetal protection policy, which barred all female employees from certain jobs with exposure to high lead, regardless of personal choice to the female.

Which statutes prohibit discrimination based on race or color?

The two statutes, passed nearly a century apart, approached the issue of employment discrimination very differently: Section 1981 prohibited only discrimination based on race or color, but Title VII also prohibited discrimination on the basis of sex, religion, and national origin.

When was Title VII amended?

Congress had amended Title VII once before, in 1972, when it broadened the coverage of the Act. It was moved to overhaul Title VII in 1991 and to harmonize it with Section 1981 jurisprudence, with a series of controversial Supreme Court decisions: Patterson v.

Who was the President of the United States in 1990?

United States President George H. W. Bush had used his veto against the more comprehensive Civil Rights Act of 1990. He feared racial quotas would be imposed but later approved the 1991 version of the bill.

What is the Civil Rights Act?

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is one of the great pieces of 20th century legislation. The Act prohibits discrimination based upon race, color, sex, religion, and national origin in public forums. These are often referred to as protected classes. Its scope is broad and applies to not only employment but also education, housing, public accommodation, and programs that receive federal assistance. We'll focus our discussion on Title VII of the Act, which relates to employment. Title VII generally applies to private sector employers who employ at least 15 employees and state and local government agencies employing at least 15 employees.

What was the theory of liability based on a disparate impact?

Prior to the 1991 Act, the theory of liability based upon a disparate impact was based solely on case law - judge made law. The 1991 Act codified - made it a part of the statutory law - the claim of disparate impact and clarified who had the burden of proof.

Why is Title VII important?

Title VII is one of the most important laws that an HR professional needs to know because it regulates pretty much every type of employment action in the employee-employer relationship. Let's take a look at how Title VII affects the daily activities of Beth, a human resource specialist.

What is the purpose of Title VII?

The 1991 Act extended coverage of Title VII to U.S. citizens that work abroad for U.S. companies as well as for Senate employees. Since Beth's company employs U.S. citizens abroad, she needs to make sure that the foreign facilities are complying with all provisions of Title VII as it concerns their U.S. employees.

Does Title VII discriminate?

Title VII, Beth explains, doesn't let an employer discriminate just because its customers want to do so. On a brighter note, Beth has to help a manager select an employee for a promotion. One of the contenders is a male, and the other is a female.

Is discrimination intentional or based on a disparate impact?

Discrimination can be intentional or based upon a disparate impact . The Civil Rights Act of 1991 made some important amendments to Title VII of the 1964 Act. The 1991 Act codified disparate impact as a legal claim under Title VII and made it somewhat easier for a plaintiff to establish the claim.

When was the Civil Rights Act signed?

Lyndon Johnson Signs The Civil Rights Act of 1964. Having broken the filibuster, the Senate voted 73-27 in favor of the bill, and Johnson signed it into law on July 2, 1964. “It is an important gain, but I think we just delivered the South to the Republican Party for a long time to come,” Johnson, a Democrat, purportedly told an aide later ...

What was the lead up to the Civil Rights Act?

Following the Civil War, a trio of constitutional amendments abolished slavery (the 13 Amendment ), made the formerly enslaved people citizens ( 14 Amendment) and gave all men the right to vote regardless of race ( 15 Amendment ).

What did Martin Luther King Jr. say about the Civil Rights Act of 1964?

Civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. said that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was nothing less than a “second emancipation.”. The Civil Rights Act was later expanded to bring disabled Americans, the elderly and women in collegiate athletics under its umbrella. It also paved the way for two major follow-up laws: the Voting Rights Act of 1965, ...

When was segregation banned?

Under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, segregation on the grounds of race, religion or national origin was banned at all places of public accommodation, including courthouses, parks, restaurants, theaters, sports arenas and hotels.

Who was the President of the United States when the Civil Rights Act was passed?

Civil Rights Act Moves Through Congress. Kennedy was assassinated that November in Dallas, after which new President Lyndon B. Johnson immediately took up the cause. “Let this session of Congress be known as the session which did more for civil rights than the last hundred sessions combined,” Johnson said in his first State of the Union address.

Who was the first president to pass the Voting Rights Act?

First proposed by President John F. Kennedy, it survived strong opposition from southern members of Congress and was then signed into law by Kennedy’s successor, Lyndon B. Johnson. In subsequent years, Congress expanded the act and passed additional civil rights legislation such as the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

What did the Act of 1872 do to the Department of Education?

Additionally, the act forbade the use of federal funds for any discriminatory program, authorized the Office of Education (now the Department of Education) to assist with school desegregation, gave extra clout to the Commission on Civil Rights and prohibited the unequal application of voting requirements.

When was the Civil Rights Act passed?

Civil Rights Act of 1957 . The Civil Rights Act of 1957, signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on September 9, 1957, was the first federal civil rights legislation since the Civil Rights Act of 1875. After the Supreme Court ruled school segregation unconstitutional in 1954 in Brown v.

What was the impact of the Civil Rights Act of 1964?

After the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed, the Supreme Court upheld the law's application to the private sector, on the grounds that Congress has the power to regulate commerce between the States. The landmark case Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States established the law's constitutionality, but did not settle all the legal questions surrounding it.

What is the policy of the United States that discrimination on the ground of race, color, or national origin shall not

This title declares it to be the policy of the United States that discrimination on the ground of race, color, or national origin shall not occur in connection with programs and activities receiving Federal financial assistance and authorizes and directs the appropriate Federal departments and agencies to take action to carry out this policy. This title is not intended to apply to foreign assistance programs. Section 601 – This section states the general principle that no person in the United States shall be excluded from participation in or otherwise discriminated against on the ground of race, color, or national origin under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.

Why was the Title III removed from the 1957 Act?

Civil rights organizations pressed hard for this provision because it could be used to protect peaceful protesters and black voters from police brutality and suppression of free speech rights.

When was the Equal Employment Opportunity Act passed?

Johnson on July 2, 1964. Major amendments. Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972.

Who warned President Johnson that his strong support for the Civil Rights Bill would not only cost the South, it will cost you

Senator Richard Russell, Jr. later warned President Johnson that his strong support for the civil rights bill "will not only cost you the South, it will cost you the election". Johnson, however, went on to win the 1964 election by one of the biggest landslides in American history.

Who was the lobbyist for the Civil Rights Act?

The principal lobbyists for the Leadership Conference were civil rights lawyer Joseph L. Rauh Jr. and Clarence Mitchell Jr. of the NAACP.

Overview

The Civil Rights Act of 1991 is a United States labor law, passed in response to United States Supreme Court decisions that limited the rights of employees who had sued their employers for discrimination. The Act represented the first effort since the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to modify some of the basic procedural and substantive rights provided by federal law in employment discr…

Predecessors

The 1991 Act was intended to strengthen the protections afforded by two different civil rights acts: the Civil Rights Act of 1866, better known by the number assigned to it in the codification of federal laws as Section 1981, and the employment-related provisions of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, generally referred to as Title VII. The two statutes, passed nearly a century apart, approached the issue of employment discrimination very differently: Section 1981 prohibited onl…

Background

Congress had amended Title VII once before, in 1972, when it broadened the coverage of the Act. It was moved to overhaul Title VII in 1991 and to harmonize it with Section 1981 jurisprudence, as a result of a series of controversial Supreme Court decisions:
• Patterson v. McLean Credit Union, 491 U.S. 164 (1989), which held that an employee could not sue for damages caused by racial harassment on the job because even if the employer's conduct we…

Changes

Patterson had attracted much criticism since it appeared to leave employees victimized by racial harassment on the job with no effective remedies, as they could not prove a violation of Section 1981 and could rarely show any wage losses that they could recover under Title VII. In addition, the Court's narrow reading of the phrase "make or enforce contracts" eliminated any liability under Section 1981 for lost promotions and most other personnel decisions that did not constitute a r…

See also

• US labor law
• Civil right acts in the United States

Notes

• Sturm, Susan P. (April 2007). "International Union, U.A.W. v. Johnson Controls: History of Litigation Alliances and Mobilization to Challenge Fetal Protection Policies". COLUMBIA LAW SCHO – via researchgate.net. {{cite web}}: External link in |via= (help)

External links

• Modified Text of the Civil Rights Act of 1991 (archived from the original on February 16, 2005)
• Changes in Title VII made by the Civil Rights Act of 1991

What The Civil Rights Act of 1991 Did

  • The Civil Rights Act of 1991 amended but did not replace the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It made the 1964 law stronger in the areas of employer liability and the burden of proof. The 1991 law also did the following things: 1. Made changes to some substantive and procedural rights in employment discrimination matters 2. Allowed employees to choose jur...
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Why Congress Passed The Civil Rights Act of 1991

  • Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1991 to strengthen the federal civil rights laws against employment discrimination. It also provided safeguards to protected minorities and ways to resolve subtle forms of employment discrimination. The 1991 law was meant to fill in gaps in the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In Ward’s Cove Packing Co. v. Antonio, 490 U.S. 642 (1989), the U.S. Su…
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Damages

  • The 1991 Civil Rights Act allowed employees to recover both compensatory and punitive damages in their employment discrimination claims. Plaintiffs can also recover damages for pain and suffering and other non-economic losses as well as future pecuniary and non-pecuniary losses caused by their employers’ discrimination.
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Protection For U.S. Workers Working Abroad

  • The Civil Rights Act of 1991 includes an extraterritoriality clause. This clause allows U.S. citizens who work abroad to file employment discrimination complaints against their employers.
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Right to A Jury Trial

  • Under the Civil Rights Act of 1991, plaintiffs can now ask for jury trials. However, most cases must go through the EEOC’s administrative process before they can be filed in court.
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Creation of The Technical Assistance Training Institute

  • The Civil Rights Act of 1991 also amended the 1964 law to create the Technical Assistance Training Institute. The institute offers technical assistance and training to employers about the regulations and laws that the EEOC enforces.
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Outreach and Education

  • The 1991 Civil Rights Act also mandates the EEOC to engage in outreach and education for people who have historically been the victims of employment discrimination and who have not been properly served by the EEOC. The EEOC must also provide education and outreach to people for whom the EEOC is authorized to enforce other laws.
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Ability to Challenge Seniority Systems

  • Under the 1991 Civil Rights Act, employees have the right to challenge seniority systems established within their workplaces when those systems have been adopted by the employers for discriminatory purposes.
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Recovery of Expert Witness and Attorney’s Fees

  • The prevailing party in an employment discrimination lawsuit can recover attorney’s fees and expert witness fees under the Civil Rights Act of 1991.
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Changes to The Statutes of Limitation

  • Under the Civil Rights Act of 1991, the statute of limitations to file a discrimination lawsuit in court after receiving the final notice from the EEOC was extended to 90 days from 30 days. It also removed the statute of limitations for claims filed under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) and instead made the statute of limitations the same as the limitation period for Titl…
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1.Civil Rights Act of 1991 (Original Text) | U.S. Equal …

Url:https://www.eeoc.gov/civil-rights-act-1991-original-text

25 hours ago  · How did the Civil Rights Act of 1991 amend the original Civil Rights Act of 1964? The Act was amended to provide that an employee could prove a case by showing either that an individual practice or group of practices resulted in "a disparate impact on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, and the respondent fails to demonstrate that such …

2.Civil Rights Act of 1991: Everything You Need to Know

Url:https://www.upcounsel.com/civil-rights-act-of-1991

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3.Civil Rights Act of 1991 - Wikipedia

Url:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_Rights_Act_of_1991

5 hours ago More Facts: Civil Rights Act of 1991. While the 1991 Act was an amendment of the 1964 law, it did not replace it. Instead, the Civil Rights Act (CRA) of 1991 strengthened the previous law, particularly in terms of the liability on employers and the burden of proof. The new legislation also:

4.The Civil Rights Act of 1991 - Equal Employment …

Url:https://www.eeoc.gov/statutes/civil-rights-act-1991

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5.Relation of the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1991 to …

Url:https://study.com/academy/lesson/civil-rights-act-of-1964-and-1991.html

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7.Civil Rights Act of 1964 - Wikipedia

Url:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_Rights_Act_of_1964

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