Phillips v. Martin Marietta Corporation (1970)
- Docket
- 73
- Decided
- 1970-01-01
- Category
- General
Summary
Question: Does a refusal to hire women with preschool-age children while hiring men with such children, in the absence of business necessity, violate of the Civil Rights Act of 1964? Conclusion: In the absence of evidence that having preschool-age children is demonstrably more relevant to female job performance than to male job performance, refusal to hire women with preschool-age children violates the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In a per curiam opinion, the Court held that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 required that persons with similar qualifications be given equal employment opportunities regardless of their sex. Because there was inadequate evidence to determine whether having preschool-age children was actually relevant to the business qualifications of the female candidates, the Court held that summary judgment was inappropriate in this case. In his concurring opinion, Justice Thurgood Marshall wrote that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 requires uniform minimum qualifications for both male and female candidates. The exception for qualifications that may be different based on actual business necessity was only intended to apply to jobs that require specific physical characteristics; it was not intended to justify stereotypical characterizations of traditional gender roles.