74
votes
Is it legal for a company to offer free coding courses to women only?
Yes, it's legal.
It would be lawful discrimination on objectively and reasonably justified grounds
Here's why:
On the face of it, this is a case of direct discrimination contrary to Section 13 of the ...
- 3,712
50
votes
Accepted
Is it legal for a business to refuse service to a former customer in retribution for them leaving negative online reviews of the business?
A business owner can normally refuse service for any reason unless anti-discrimination law, or some other specific law, applies. "Critic of the business" is not a protected class. Whether a ...
- 112k
47
votes
Accepted
Is it legal to lie about an illegal requirement?
Lying may be wrong, but it in the United States, it is generally not illegal. United States v. Alvarez, 132 S. Ct. 2537 (2012).
For a lie to be illegal, it generally needs to fall into one of a few ...
- 55.8k
46
votes
Accepted
Is it against the law to deny service based on (young) age?
I’ve managed to answer my own question. Age discrimination legislation only applies to over 18s:
It’s only discrimination if a trader or service provider treats you
unfairly because of:
age - if you’...
- 691
43
votes
Is the requirement to have any type of degree or certain amount of years worked discriminatory?
Yes. But it isn't illegal discrimination in many places.
Laws against discrimination prevent the discrimination based on forbidden categories. Take the national Olympic team:
They are allowed to ...
- 13.2k
41
votes
Accepted
What are the limits of religious freedom in the workplace?
The EEOC web site has much information on this topic including summaries of close cases that have been decided in court.
To determine whether allowing or continuing to permit an employee to pray, ...
- 11.6k
41
votes
How will anyone know if an employer fires an employee for an illegal reason?
There is a rather elaborate three step analysis that is done in civil rights cases under U.S. precedents.
Circumstantial evidence, as opposed to direct evidence of
discrimination (which is less ...
- 186k
41
votes
Accepted
Is it lawful for banks to turn away minors?
It is age discrimination, and it is legal. There is a federal prohibition against discriminating in employment provided that you are at least 40 years old. There are innumerable laws that require age ...
- 206k
40
votes
Alice's restaurant profiteering from those with allergies
Is she committing unlawful discrimination or otherwise behaving in an unlawful manner?
No.
She would be — if she was saying like "customers with Celiac disease pay £14, others £10".
But ...
- 24.5k
39
votes
Conflict between a religious belief that accounts for the existence of transgender people vs. one that doesn't
The law doesn't distinguish between two Christians with divergent beliefs, or between an atheist and a Christian (obviously with divergent beliefs). The law simply does not care what religion you have,...
- 206k
38
votes
Accepted
I was racially abused at a public park. What legal actions can I take?
You should file a complaint with the police.
If you complain to the police then they might do something. If you don't complain then they certainly won't.
Are food trucks licensed? You might try ...
- 12.9k
34
votes
Are "anti-exclusive" contracts legal?
united-states
Totally legal, as long as whatever you're forbidding isn't a protected class (race, gender, etc.—the details vary by jurisdiction), or, to some degree, a pretense for one.
A real-life ...
- 10.2k
34
votes
Can a private company refuse to sell a franchise to someone solely based on being black?
Can a private company refuse to sell a franchise to someone solely
based on being black?
No.
Racial discrimination in franchising by a private company in the United States is prohibited by 42 U.S.C. §...
- 186k
34
votes
Can Hollywood discriminate on the race of their actors?
Yes this is legal.
Under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, there is an exemption under Title VII - Equal Employment Opportunity that allows for discrimination based on a protected trait when there is a ...
- 22.5k
32
votes
Accepted
Are homeless people protected by antidiscrimination laws?
Anti-discrimination laws apply to certain protected classes only. Homelessness (real or assumed) is not one of them, so it is perfectly legal to bar such people from your premises. It is also ...
- 4,580
29
votes
Accepted
Can a racist business owner legally get away with saying he only wants to hire people that 'look white'?
No.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits an employer from discriminating on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. It is therefore generally forbidden for an employer to ...
- 55.8k
29
votes
Accepted
How is anti discrimination legislation reconciled with freedom of contract?
Freedom of contract has always been subject to current law. A contract to hire a hitman has never been legal. Neither was a contract to invade one of the royal monopolies that the English kings used ...
- 112k
28
votes
Is there anything to stop a private business from barring a previous customer who takes a civil action against it?
A business has the right to refuse service, except in the case of unlawful discrimination. "Sued us" is not a protected characteristic.
Unless part of the settlement was that the business ...
- 4,618
27
votes
Accepted
Could New Jersey Really Ban Pennsylvania Drivers?
Constitution of the USA, Article IV, Section 1:
Full Faith and Credit shall be given in each State to the public Acts, Records, and judicial Proceedings of every other State. And the Congress may by ...
- 5,533
25
votes
Are homeless people protected by antidiscrimination laws?
Homelessness is a protected class in some jurisdictions.
Rhode Island and Illinois, for instance, have each adopted a "Homeless Bill of Rights" establishing the following guarantees:
(1) ...
- 55.8k
25
votes
Accepted
Was Bob Dylan right in thinking that William Zantzinger's sentence was some sort of miscarriage of justice?
Was This An Egregiously Lenient Sentence? Yes.
Did he get lighter punishment than he "should have" (in some sense)?
Yes.
A six month sentence for a non-negligent homicide was virtually ...
- 186k
24
votes
Accepted
Is it legal for employers to hire only native speakers?
Employment discrimination based on the initial or native language of a prospective employee is probably not lawful under US federal law. Requiring the English-language skills actually needed for a ...
- 112k
23
votes
Is it lawful for banks to turn away minors?
To make a bank account you need to sign a contract. To sign a valid contract, a person needs to have the legal capacity to sign contracts. Minors are not able to sign most contracts. This is not ...
- 31.4k
23
votes
Alice's restaurant profiteering from those with allergies
united-states
The courts have shown a willingness to apply the ADA to celiac disease (e.g., Colonial Williamsburg lost a lawsuit when sued for disallowing a guest to bring their own gluten-free food), ...
- 1,363
22
votes
Accepted
Can English accent be part of discrimination?
The Dept. of Labor makes it easy for you: as they say, it is illegal discrimination.
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Civil Rights Center (CRC), is
charged with enforcing Title VII of the Civil ...
- 206k
21
votes
Alice's restaurant profiteering from those with allergies
Alice replies that the higher price of the gluten-free bases is not the only related cost facing her business. There is also the cost of seeking out additional reputable, high-quality suppliers, of ...
- 227
18
votes
Accepted
Is it legal for a company to offer free coding courses to women only?
Most of these policies are illegal, though this isn't widely recognized
Here's why:
There are some added complexities here that Matthew's answer hasn't addressed, especially in the meanings of words ...
- 456
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible