Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures (1978)

Scope

The guidelines incorporate a single set of principles designed to assist employers, labor organizations, employment agencies, and licensing and certification boards to comply with requirements of federal law prohibiting discriminatory employment practices. They are designed to provide a framework for determining the proper use of tests and other selection procedures.

Regulatory citations

• None

Key definitions

• None

Summary of requirements

The guidelines do not require a user to conduct validity studies of selection procedures where no adverse impact results. Adverse impact occurs when a procedure eliminates a disproportionately high percentage of members of a protected class. However, all users are encouraged to use selection procedures which are valid, especially users operating under merit principles. The Guidelines describe various methods of validation.

Elements used in a selection process should be job-related. A selection procedure is any measure, combination of measures, or procedures used as a basis for an employment decision.

The Guidelines indicate that if a company has a selection rate for a protected class that is less than 4/5 (80 percent) of the rate for the highest selection rate, adverse impact has occurred.

Employers need to look at the ratio of the number of minority or female hires to the number of minority applicants compared to the ratio of the number of white or male hires to the number of white or male applicants. The equation looks a bit like this: # of minority hires/# of minority applicants# of white hires/# of white applicants.

Adverse impact is not necessarily discrimination but, at the very least, requires further examination of the selection procedures to confirm their appropriateness.