“Affirmative Recruiting” Under Title VII: Is it Still Permissible After the Students for Fair Admissions Decision?

• Partner Erin Connell and associate Alexandria Elliott collaborated with Samuel Estreicher, director of New York University School of Law’s Center of Labor and Employment Law and Institute of Judicial Administration, on this New York Law Journal article on the state of diversity-conscious recruiting in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s “Students for Fair Admissions” decision.
• The article explores the uncertainty surrounding whether Title VII now prohibits employers from engaging in race- or gender-conscious recruiting in order to create a more diverse applicant pool.

“For employers committed to diversity and/or federal contractors who have a legal obligation to engage in affirmative action to rectify an identified gap between available, qualified minority workers and their utilization in the workforce, thoughtful targeted recruitment of well-qualified workers continues to be an effective way of diversifying the pipeline while still making actual hiring decisions on the basis of job-related factors other than race or gender,” the article observes. “It remains to be seen whether new legal challenges will focus specifically on recruiting practices, including allegations that they cause an unlawful adverse impact on hiring.”