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Furnitup, a furniture retailer, advertises a requirement for lumberjacks. The advertisement specifies that applicants be strong and well-built men since the job involves intense physical work such as cutting trees and logs and transporting them. In this scenario, according to Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which of the following permits Furnitup to hire employees based on sex?

a) Affirmative action
b) Bona fide occupational qualification (BFOQ)
c) Equal employment opportunity
d) Glass ceiling

1 Answer

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Final answer:

The Bona fide occupational qualification (BFOQ) allows Furnitup to specify hiring lumberjacks based on sex if the requirements strictly pertain to the job's nature and are determined necessary for the business operation or where accommodations cannot be made without undue hardship. So, the correct answer is option b.

Step-by-step explanation:

In the scenario where Furnitup is hiring lumberjacks and specifies the requirement for strong and well-built men, the provision that allows them to hire based on sex is the Bona fide occupational qualification (BFOQ). Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin; however, there are exceptions where sex or gender can be considered a BFOQ.

To be a legitimate BFOQ, the job must either require a person of a particular sex due to the nature of the job tasks (such as strength requirements that all or substantially all women would be unable to meet), be essential to the business operation, or in situations where reasonable accommodations cannot be made without undue hardship to the business.

BFOQs are determined on a case-by-case basis and may apply in specific cases like religious organizations hiring leaders of a particular faith, or sex being a BFOQ for positions in gender-specific facilities.

Nonetheless, any such determination must pass stringent legal tests to ensure nondiscrimination principles are upheld, and preferential treatments such as affirmative action, equal employment opportunity, or issues like the glass ceiling do not provide a basis for hiring based on sex in this context.

User Christophe Fuzier
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