Discrimination or Not As employer make decisions which affect employees’ positions, lives, and overall well-being, it is important that those decisions are made in a fair and equitable manner. Through avenues such as culture fit, position qualifications, and performance, management has a consistent and reasonable basis for adjustments, promotions, and terminations. However, when organizations make such judgements without this strong basis, they open themselves up for potential discrimination claims, litigation, and monetary judgements. One such controversial case is St. Mary’s Honor Center versus Hicks. Presented is the main issues of the case, variables at play, an assessment of the outcomes, and recommendations going forward.
The Case
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Again in 1980, Mr. Hicks was promoted into the position of “six shift commander” (Bogardus, 2012, p. 562). Even further, Hicks performance, over the passed two years, had been recorded as satisfactory by each of his supervisors (2012). Then in 1983, the Missouri Department of Corrections and Human Resources (MDCHR) conducted an investigation that ultimately resulted in a re-structure of the of the organization, including upper management re-alignments and replacements. As a result, John Powell was appointed the new chief of custody ( Hick’s new immediate supervisor) and Steve Long was appointed the new superintendent of the facility (FindLaw, 2015). All of these changes would have dramatic impact on Hicks and his