Griggs v. Duke Power Co. | |
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Argued December 14, 1970 Decided March 8, 1971 | |
Full case name | Griggs et al. v. Duke Power Co. |
Citations | 401 U.S. 424 (more) 91 S. Ct. 849; 28 L. Ed. 2d 158; 1971 U.S. LEXIS 134 |
Case history | |
Prior | Reversed in part, 420 F.2d 1225 (4th Cir. 1970). Certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, granted. |
Holding | |
Broad aptitude tests used in hiring practices that disparately impact ethnic minorities must be reasonably related to the job. | |
Court membership | |
| |
Case opinion | |
Majority | Burger, joined by unanimous |
Brennan took no part in the consideration or decision of the case. | |
Laws applied | |
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 |
Griggs v. Duke Power Co., 401 U.S. 424 (1971), was a court case argued before the Supreme Court of the United States on December 14, 1970. It concerned employment discrimination and the disparate impact theory, and was decided on March 8, 1971.[1] It is generally considered the first case of its type.[2]
The Supreme Court ruled that the company's employment requirements did not pertain to applicants' ability to perform the job, and so were unintentionally discriminating against black employees. The judgment famously held that "Congress has now provided that tests or criteria for employment or promotion may not provide equality of opportunity merely in the sense of the fabled offer of milk to the stork and the fox."[2]