The American Jobs Act, presented to Congress this week by the President, provides, among many other things, that employers may not refuse to hire persons on the basis of their being unemployed.   We anticipated such an action some time ago.

In our blog entry of February 22, 2011, we noted that under the anti-discrimination laws there is no protected class known as “the unemployed,” and if you are not hired because of your unemployment status, you have no actionable claim of discrimination. 

In our blog entry of June 8, 2011, we warned that an employer should not automatically disqualify unemployed job applicants, or advertise that only the employed need apply, since there is no point in looking for increased scrutiny in these uncertain economic times, when unemployment is over 9%, and the EEOC is looking into and holding hearings over employers refusing to hire the unemployed.      

Finally, in our blog entry of July 14, 2011, we noted that two Democratic members of Congress had introduced a bill called the Fair Employment Opportunity Act of 2011, H.R. 2501, which would prohibit employers from refusing employment  to persons on the basis of their being unemployed, and also prohibit employers from advertising that the unemployed “need not apply.”

Now, the President’s new jobs bill incorporates the provisions of the Fair Employment Opportunity Act of 2011, H.R. 2501.

Don’t say we didn’t give you fair warning!