Throughout the history of the United States of America, discrimination has been one of the major issues found within employment decisions. To counter these discriminatory actions, laws have been passed to make these actions illegal. For example, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 created protected classes (race, color, religion, sex, and national origin) that could not be discriminated against in employment actions. Later the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 came along to stop discriminatory employment decisions based upon age. Finally, the American with Disabilities Act of 1990 was enacted to stop discriminatory decisions against those with disabilities. A common theme in each of these laws is that they came along to fix a problem. None of these laws were preemptive but were the effect of years of discriminatory actions. But this is not the case with one of the most recent civil rights laws, The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008. Unlike these laws that have been mentioned so far, The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008, shortened as GINA, was passed in efforts to prevent discriminatory actions that had little history of occurring (Sarata & Feder, 2015). Instead, GINA was enacted out of fear that with improving gene related science, that an individual’s genetics may at some point be used to discriminate against them.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Legislative Background
The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (2008)
Protected Classes
Covered Entities
Covered Practices
Administrative Procedures
Remedies
Relevant Court Cases
Implications for Practice
Annotated Bibliography
Research Objectives and Core Themes
The primary objective of this paper is to examine the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) of 2008, with a specific focus on its impact on employment practices under Title II. The work aims to clarify how this legislation functions as both an anti-discrimination and a privacy-focused legal framework for employers.
- Legislative history and precursors to GINA.
- Distinction between Title I (health insurance) and Title II (employment practices).
- Legal definitions of genetic information and genetic testing.
- Compliance requirements and administrative procedures for employers.
- Case law analysis regarding genetic information privacy in the workplace.
Excerpt from the Book
Lowe v. Atlas Logistics Group Retail Services (2015)
Atlas Logistics Group Retail Services operates warehouses for the storage of products sold at a variety of grocery stores. In a certain warehouse location, an unknown employee began habitually defecating as a prank destroying produce. In order to end this situation, Atlas requested some of its employees, including Jack Lowe and Dennis Reynolds, to submit to a cheek swab. The cheek cell samples were then sent to a lab where a technician compared the cheek cell DNA to DNA from the offending fecal matter. Lowe and Dennis were not a match. With the culprit apparently still on the loose, Lowe and Dennis then filed a suit under the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act which generally prohibits employers from requesting genetic information from its employees. The legal question before the Court was whether the information requested and obtained by Atlas was “genetic information” covered by GINA. According to Plaintiffs Jack Lowe and Dennis Reynolds, the undisputed facts show that Atlas requested information about the lab’s comparison of Lowe's and Reynolds's DNA to the fecal sample. These facts, the Plaintiffs argued, demonstrated that Atlas violated 42 U.S.C, which makes it “an unlawful employment practice for an employer to request, require, or purchase genetic information with respect to an employee” (Case Text, 2015). The court ruled in the plaintiffs’ favor, and Atlas ultimately had to pay $2.25 million in damages (Miles, 2015).
Summary of Chapters
Introduction: Provides an overview of discrimination history in U.S. employment and introduces GINA as a preemptive civil rights law focused on genetic information.
Legislative Background: Details the various federal precursors to GINA, including the Genetic Privacy and Nondiscrimination Act of 1995 and HIPAA, tracing the evolution of genetic data protection.
The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (2008): Explains the structure of GINA, highlighting its three titles and its role as a foundational civil rights law.
Protected Classes: Defines which individuals are protected under GINA, specifically distinguishing between health insurance beneficiaries and employees.
Covered Entities: Identifies the employers, agencies, and organizations that are subject to the regulations mandated by GINA.
Covered Practices: Breaks down the specific prohibited behaviors for health insurers and employers, including the handling of family medical history and genetic test results.
Administrative Procedures: Outlines the filing processes for discrimination claims and clarifies the limitation regarding disparate impact claims.
Remedies: Details the legal and financial consequences for non-compliance, including penalties for willful neglect and potential damages.
Relevant Court Cases: Examines specific legal precedents like Lowe v. Atlas Logistics Group to illustrate how GINA functions as a privacy enforcement tool.
Implications for Practice: Discusses the necessity for HR personnel to understand GINA, emphasizing its emerging role as a critical employee privacy standard.
Keywords
GINA, Genetic Information, Employment Law, Discrimination, Employee Privacy, Title II, Health Insurance, Genetic Testing, EEOC, Civil Rights, Litigation, Workplace Compliance, HIPAA, Genetic Monitoring, Family Medical History.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core purpose of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) of 2008?
GINA was enacted to prevent genetic-based discrimination in the realms of health insurance and employment, ensuring that an individual's genetic predisposition is not used to disadvantage them.
What are the primary themes covered in the paper?
The paper covers the legislative history of GINA, its specific titles, protected entities and classes, administrative enforcement, relevant court precedents, and practical implications for employers.
What is the main research focus of this work?
The primary focus is the application of GINA to employment practices, specifically Title II, and how it has evolved into a significant privacy protection law for employees.
Which scientific and legal methodology is utilized?
The paper employs a legal-descriptive methodology, analyzing the text of the statute, legislative history, and relevant court case outcomes to evaluate the law's effectiveness.
What topics are discussed in the main body of the text?
The main body covers the definitions of genetic information, exemptions for genetic testing, compliance procedures for HR departments, and detailed case studies of enforcement actions.
Which keywords best characterize this work?
Key terms include GINA, genetic privacy, employment discrimination, Title II, and workplace compliance.
How does GINA protect employees in their workplace?
It makes it an unlawful employment practice for an employer to request, acquire, or purchase genetic information, including family medical history, with few specific exceptions.
Why are there relatively few GINA-related court cases?
Legal scholars suggest that the low number of cases is partially due to public unawareness of the law, although it is increasingly utilized as a robust privacy-focused legal tool.
What happened in the Lowe v. Atlas Logistics case?
The employer was found liable for using DNA testing to resolve a workplace behavioral issue, resulting in a multi-million dollar verdict for violating the prohibition on acquiring employee genetic information.
- Quote paper
- Eli Dickinson (Author), 2021, The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1194036
