module 11 written assignment eeoc protections for job applicants
You are an HIM Coordinator and work in a department that has a temporary contracted HIM Director, whose name is Lolly. She is working with Human Resources to fill all vacant positions in the department – including the HIM Director, Document Management Specialist (DMS) and 2 coding positions.
On Thursday morning, Lolly follows you into your office and says “For crying out loud, I have already completed more interviews this week than I did in all of last year. I’m sick of all the time in HR, and I can’t get anyone to take a damn job here. You take over interviewing for the DMS slot because the job reports to you anyway!”
She heads towards your office door and adds “Don’t hire any churchgoers because weekends are packed with old-timer sickies, and we need somebody here for the Sunday shift” – and in a flash, she is gone.
You take a deep breath, shut your door and gently slide into your chair. Did you just hear what you think you heard? Take a damn job here….sickies….churchgoers…old-timers! Right then your phone rings and it’s Suzanne, the director of HR. She explains that she is gathering up applicants for your upcoming interview for the DMS based on instruction she got from Lolly. You interrupt her, explain that you are happy to help with interviews but also confide in her – you decide to share Lolly’s offensive rant in your office.
A series of events follow and after your promotion to Interim Director of HIM, you undertake the very much needed job of preparing an Interview Tool and Developing a Hiring Policy to ensure that you are promoting a diverse staff in the HIM department. The tool and policy will be used by you and the department supervisors.
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Module 11 Written Assignment Template
Employment Laws
Ask any manager what is the most valuable resource they are responsible for and the answer will nearly always be – the employee- the human resource. The quality of healthcare and in some cases the very balance of life and death of our healthcare organization’s patients are dependent upon the quality of our personnel. Human resources are protected in the workplace by employment laws that should equally protect the employee and the employer, even though at times they may seem to be at odds with each other.
The laws and regulations that affect employees and employers in most cases, provide a useful, just path through what may initially appear to be an insoluble conflict. In some instances, however, that path may not yet be fully developed, or it may involve a particularly difficult situation in which the law must be applied. The employer, physician, and allied health staff work under the federal and state regulations.
In addition, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972, Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, and several additional acts from 1967 through the present impact workplace laws and ethics. Understanding employment law and how legal expectations sometimes produce workplace conflicts, and how the law also works to provide a route through those conflicts is key to achieving the goals of the organization while still protecting the employer and employees right.
Employees depend on jobs for several reasons based on the nature of their needs outside the workplace, from medical insurance coverage to savings benefits. Therefore, it is important that everyone working in the healthcare field be educated about regulations affecting employment practices, such as health, safety, workers’ compensation, unions, and discrimination in the workplace.
As an HIM professional in a management position it is important to have an understanding of the laws which regulate the workplace and the ability to analyze how those laws apply in specific situations. Even though you may be the manager you will not be alone in this undertaking, most healthcare organizations will have a Human Resources Department, which is made up of human resource specialists who provide the oversight that labor practices are properly aligned with labor laws within the organization. These specialists will be available to you as a manager and as an employee to assist with any workplace situations which are regulated by labor laws. Some of the more familiar laws are those dealing with discrimination, such as the Civil Rights Act, which are enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and prohibit discrimination against by job applicants and employees on the basis of age, disability, equal pay compensation, genetic information, national origin, pregnancy, race/color, religion, retaliation, sex and sexual harassment. Other laws, generally called “Labor laws” relate to wages and overtime, compensations and benefits, unions and employee safety.
The following PowerPoint presentation will guide your note taking as you explore the key concepts related to Workplace Law.
Fundamentals of Laws for HI and IM, Chapter 17
Additional Resources
Employment Law Guide: Laws, Regulations, and Technical Assistance Services
Bioethics is defined as the discipline dealing with the ethical implications of biological research and applications especially in medicine by the Merriam-Webster dictionary. In the HIM field we rarely have contact with patients or have to struggle with ethical implications related to patient care and treatment however it is still important as a healthcare professional, as well as a patient or family member to understand the dilemmas faced by healthcare professionals as well as the resources available to those professionals in addressing bioethical issues.
Professionally we need to be aware health record issues relating to access, use and disclosure of information which may impact decisions relating to bioethics. The documentation of and access to Advance Directives or and informed consent documentation for clinical trials may be two examples of the HIM professionals role in bioethical issues.
The National Institute of Health provides a resource called, “Welcome to the NIH’s Bioethics Resources on the Web!” which does not constitute legal advice on the laws, regulations, or guidelines of any jurisdiction, but rather provides, guidelines, case studies, articles and teaching materials. The site is maintained by the Office of Science Policy, Office of Biotechnology Activities, NIH. There are topics which included such as privacy, confidentiality, disclosure, human and animal research and Institutional Review Board resources, all of which are of interest to the HIM professional.
Reading – Fundamental of Law for Health Informatics and Information Management, Third Edition, Chapter 20
The healthcare industry operates within the constraints of numerous laws and standards designed to support the delivery and financing of quality healthcare while protecting the rights and responsibilities of healthcare consumers and providers. The delivery of quality healthcare depends on personnel or human resources who “do no harm.” Human resources are protected in the workplace by employment laws that function to protect both employee and employer. The goal of workplace law is to strike a balance between employee and employer that protects the employee from personal injury, prejudice, unfair wages, whistleblower discrimination, duress, and unwanted sexual advances while allowing the employer to pursue desired business outcomes (Department of Labor n.d.). Federal employment laws deal with employee-employer issues, whereas federal labor laws often refer to employer-union issues or other labor protections. Managing department staff requires an understanding of the federal and state laws that govern employment. Most healthcare organizations have a human resources department or someone dedicated to human resources oversight who can assist managers in ensuring that proper labor practices are in place. This chapter provides an overview of common workplace laws. The civil rights of employees are discussed in terms of discrimination related to age, color, national origin, race, religion, and sex. Wage and salary regulations are introduced along with employee occupational and safety laws. The chapter closes with a discussion of fair labor practices and laws related to union activity and collective bargaining.
Discrimination and Related Laws
Discrimination laws focus on issues that protect applicants and employees from discrimination in all aspects of employment. The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is responsible for enforcing federal laws that prohibit discriminating against a job applicant or employee on the basis of
- Age
- Disability
- Equal pay/Compensation
- Genetic information
- Harassment
- National origin
- Pregnancy
- Race/Color
- Religion
- Retaliation
- Sex
- Sexual harassment
In addition, the EEOC oversees discrimination or retaliation against an individual who has complained about discrimination, filed a charge of discrimination, or participated in an employment discrimination investigation or lawsuit (EEOC n.d.a). The laws apply to all types of work situations, as listed in figure 20.1. The EEOC enforces laws, works to prevent discrimination, and investigates job discrimination complaints. The Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972 (EEOA) gives the EEOC authority to sue in federal courts when there is reasonable cause to believe discrimination has occurred. If a complaint cannot be settled, the EEOC can file a federal lawsuit against the employer. EEOC complaints are generally handled through field offices at the state or local agency level.
To assist employers in the hiring process and to help alleviate potential discrimination issues related to hiring, the EEOC (n.d.b) publishes Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures. The overriding principle is that employee selection must be made on qualifications related to job performance and prohibits discrimination in…
