Ann C. McGinley
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- January 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780814796139
- eISBN:
- 9780814764329
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9780814796139.001.0001
- Subject:
- Law, Employment Law
Masculinity at Work is a theoretical disposition and a practical guide for lawyers and judges on the interpretation of sex and race discrimination cases. It argues that fact finders should consider ...
More
Masculinity at Work is a theoretical disposition and a practical guide for lawyers and judges on the interpretation of sex and race discrimination cases. It argues that fact finders should consider social science research about masculinity when determining whether an employer has engaged in illegal discrimination in violation of Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The book educates the reader about the invisibility of masculine structures and practices, how society constructs concepts of masculinity, and how men (and sometimes women) perform masculinity in different ways depending on their identities and the context of their situations. The book features the story, among others, of Jonathan Martin and Richie Incognito of the Miami Dolphins to illustrate how harassing behavior can occur because of sex even though the gendered nature of the harassment is invisible to onlookers. After more than a year of ongoing harassment on the Miami Dolphins, Jonathan Martin left the team and checked himself into a mental health institution. The book explains the difficulties Martin would have suing the Dolphins under Title VII because of the hidden gendered behaviors. It encourages lawyers representing plaintiffs in sex and race discrimination suits to use experts in masculinities to educate both judges and juries. It criticizes the courts’ and juries’ undue reliance on their common sense to interpret behaviors alleged to have occurred because of sex and demonstrates through vivid, real-life examples how masculinities studies can offer a more accurate interpretation of the behaviors of employers and employees in workforces.Less
Masculinity at Work is a theoretical disposition and a practical guide for lawyers and judges on the interpretation of sex and race discrimination cases. It argues that fact finders should consider social science research about masculinity when determining whether an employer has engaged in illegal discrimination in violation of Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The book educates the reader about the invisibility of masculine structures and practices, how society constructs concepts of masculinity, and how men (and sometimes women) perform masculinity in different ways depending on their identities and the context of their situations. The book features the story, among others, of Jonathan Martin and Richie Incognito of the Miami Dolphins to illustrate how harassing behavior can occur because of sex even though the gendered nature of the harassment is invisible to onlookers. After more than a year of ongoing harassment on the Miami Dolphins, Jonathan Martin left the team and checked himself into a mental health institution. The book explains the difficulties Martin would have suing the Dolphins under Title VII because of the hidden gendered behaviors. It encourages lawyers representing plaintiffs in sex and race discrimination suits to use experts in masculinities to educate both judges and juries. It criticizes the courts’ and juries’ undue reliance on their common sense to interpret behaviors alleged to have occurred because of sex and demonstrates through vivid, real-life examples how masculinities studies can offer a more accurate interpretation of the behaviors of employers and employees in workforces.
Ann C. McGinley
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- January 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780814796139
- eISBN:
- 9780814764329
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9780814796139.003.0001
- Subject:
- Law, Employment Law
The Introduction tells the story of Jonathan Martin, a young, black, professional football player on the Miami Dolphins who checked himself into a mental health institution because of his teammates’ ...
More
The Introduction tells the story of Jonathan Martin, a young, black, professional football player on the Miami Dolphins who checked himself into a mental health institution because of his teammates’ verbal harassment. An older, white player, Richie Incognito, led the harassment that had clear racial and class tinges. But the media missed that the harassment was gender-based because masculine practices, especially in all-male workplaces, are normalized and invisible. The harassing behavior occurred in large part because of Martin’s failure to live up to the image of a tough, masculine, football star. Groups of men in all-male workplaces, the chapter observes, harass men like Martin who they see as weak, in order to police the boundaries of masculinity and assure their own masculine reputations. The chapter notes that the behavior met the proof requirements of an illegal hostile work environment under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, and argues that expert testimony on masculinities theory can help judges and juries understand the hidden masculine behaviors and structures that result in illegal discrimination.Less
The Introduction tells the story of Jonathan Martin, a young, black, professional football player on the Miami Dolphins who checked himself into a mental health institution because of his teammates’ verbal harassment. An older, white player, Richie Incognito, led the harassment that had clear racial and class tinges. But the media missed that the harassment was gender-based because masculine practices, especially in all-male workplaces, are normalized and invisible. The harassing behavior occurred in large part because of Martin’s failure to live up to the image of a tough, masculine, football star. Groups of men in all-male workplaces, the chapter observes, harass men like Martin who they see as weak, in order to police the boundaries of masculinity and assure their own masculine reputations. The chapter notes that the behavior met the proof requirements of an illegal hostile work environment under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, and argues that expert testimony on masculinities theory can help judges and juries understand the hidden masculine behaviors and structures that result in illegal discrimination.
Ann C. McGinley
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- January 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780814796139
- eISBN:
- 9780814764329
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9780814796139.003.0005
- Subject:
- Law, Employment Law
This chapter discusses the proper standard for proving severity or pervasiveness in a sexual harassment case where the man is a victim of a woman’s sexual advances, such as in E.E.O.C. v.Prospect ...
More
This chapter discusses the proper standard for proving severity or pervasiveness in a sexual harassment case where the man is a victim of a woman’s sexual advances, such as in E.E.O.C. v.Prospect Airport Services, Inc., or where the man is a victim of harassment by a group of other men as Jonathan Martin alleged of his Miami Dolphin teammates. It demonstrates that masculinities research can help courts answer the difficult questions about the standard in both instances and can uncover hidden gender biases that the courts often do not perceive. First, it examines the history of the “reasonable person” and “reasonable woman” standards as well as current jurisprudence. Next, it uses examples to demonstrate that the “reasonable man” standard, used by some courts when a man is the victim of harassment, may actually require more severe behavior because of social gender norms concerning masculinity than the “reasonable woman” standard as applied to a female victim. Finally, it offers a proposal for a new standard that would apply to men and women and that would take into account other identity factors and the contexts of the workplaces.Less
This chapter discusses the proper standard for proving severity or pervasiveness in a sexual harassment case where the man is a victim of a woman’s sexual advances, such as in E.E.O.C. v.Prospect Airport Services, Inc., or where the man is a victim of harassment by a group of other men as Jonathan Martin alleged of his Miami Dolphin teammates. It demonstrates that masculinities research can help courts answer the difficult questions about the standard in both instances and can uncover hidden gender biases that the courts often do not perceive. First, it examines the history of the “reasonable person” and “reasonable woman” standards as well as current jurisprudence. Next, it uses examples to demonstrate that the “reasonable man” standard, used by some courts when a man is the victim of harassment, may actually require more severe behavior because of social gender norms concerning masculinity than the “reasonable woman” standard as applied to a female victim. Finally, it offers a proposal for a new standard that would apply to men and women and that would take into account other identity factors and the contexts of the workplaces.
