Challenge Yourself!

Quincy has worked at a clothing store for six months and has received good performance reviews from his manager. Two weeks ago, Quincy's girlfriend stopped by the store. Since then, the manager has been watching Quincy closely. Today, the manager fired Quincy, explaining that sales were down. A co-worker told Quincy that the manager said she wanted to fire Quincy because she disapproved of Quincy's interracial relationship. Quincy is Black and his girlfriend is White. Did the manager discriminate against Quincy?

1. A. Yes. The manager discriminated against Quincy if she fired him because of his interracial relationship.

   A is correct
   It is illegal for employers to make employment decisions based on an employee's relationship with someone of a different race.

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2. B. No. The manager may have disapproved of Quincy's interracial relationship, but she did not fire him until two weeks after meeting his girlfriend. If the manager had fired Quincy the day after meeting his girlfriend, then the firing may have been illegal.

   B is incorrect.
   The fact that the manager did not fire Quincy until two weeks after she learned that he had a girlfriend who was White may not matter. The two events are still probably linked. Quincy's co-worker's statement strongly suggests that the manager may have fired Quincy because of his girlfriend's race.

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3. C. No. Sales are down, and the manager has the right to fire any employee she chooses.

   C is incorrect.
   Even if sales are down, it is illegal for the manager to fire Quincy because he is dating someone of a different race. An employer can fire staff for economic reasons (to save money, for example), but it can't make decisions about who to fire based on the race of people the employees spend time with.

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4. D. Yes, but Quincy must hire a lawyer, and must pay EEOC to investigate and decide the case.

   D is incorrect.
   EEOC's services are free. You don't need to hire a lawyer to file a charge of discrimination with EEOC, and you don't need to pay EEOC to investigate and decide your case.

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