Bona fide occupational qualification (BFOQ)

Advanced 👥 Human Resources

Definition

A narrow legal exception under Title VII that allows an employer to consider a protected characteristic when it is genuinely necessary to the job. Courts read it very narrowly, so 'we've always done it this way' does not qualify.

Example Usage

The company argued that its role required a specific gender, but the court found the BFOQ defense did not hold up.

Origin

Latin 'bona fide' means 'in good faith'; the term appears in US civil rights law from the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

Source: US federal law: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

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