Disparate or adverse impact in employment selection decisions refers to the different treatment of employees or applicants based on their race, color, religion, gender, national origin or handicap.

This recent decision of the US Supreme Court takes a new view of the prohibition of disparate impact legislated under Title VII of the US Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the EEOC’s four-fifths or 80% rule that provides a measure of disparate impact. The decision deserves attention because the sensitivity of the subject matter addressed in the case will make some serious waves in both the USA and other jurisdictions. Although most jurisdictions outside the US have not codified disparate impact to the extent of the US legislation, the four-fifths rule has become a standard measure of disparate or adverse impact that is often cited in human rights decisions in most common law jurisdictions.

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