Current Remedies for the Discriminatory Effects of Seniority Agreements

This article focuses primarily upon the remedies that can be used to reconcile the preservation of legitimate objects of a seniority system with equal treatment for black workers. To provide a historical perspective demonstrating the need for these remedies, the article initially will describe the availability of relief against discriminatory seniority agreements under federal labor legislation. The article will then examine available remedies under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and under recent interpretations of the Civil Rights Act of 1866. In the concluding section, possible ways to utilize existing remedies to combat more effectively the discriminatory effects of seniority agreements will be explored.