April 22, 2022
Governor DeSantis Signs HB 7 Into Law
On April 22, 2022, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed House Bill 7 (HB 7) into law. While HB 7 is well known for its implications on Florida education, it also impacts certain employers in Florida. Specifically, HB 7 amends the Florida Civil Rights Act of 1992 (FCRA) by enumerating additional unlawful employment practices under Section 760.10, Florida Statutes.
Effective July 1, 2022, HB 7 prohibits an employer from "subjecting any individual, as a condition of employment . . . to training, instruction, or any other required activity that espouses, promotes, advances, inculcates, or compels such individual to believe" any of the "concepts" identified below. Such employer conduct "constitutes discrimination based on race, color, sex, or national origin." HB 7 identifies the following concepts:
- Members of one race, color, sex, or national origin are morally superior from non-members of such protected class;
- An individual, by virtue of his or her race, color, sex, or national origin, is inherently racist, sexist, or oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously;
- An individual’s moral character or status as either privileged or oppressed is necessarily determined by his or her race, color, sex, or national origin;
- Members of one race, color, sex, or national origin cannot and should not attempt to treat others without respect to race, color, sex, or national origin;
- An individual, by virtue of his or her race, color, sex, or national origin, bears responsibility for, or should be discriminated against or receive adverse treatment because of, actions committed in the past by other members of the same race, color, sex, or national origin;
- An individual, by virtue of his or her race, color, sex, or national origin, should be discriminated against or receive adverse treatment to achieve diversity, equity, or inclusion;
- An individual, by virtue of his or her race, color, sex, or national origin, bears personal responsibility for and must feel guilt, anguish, or other forms of psychological distress because of actions, in which the individual played no part, committed in the past by other members of the same race, color, sex, or national origin; and
- Such virtues as merit, excellence, hard work, fairness, neutrality, objectivity, and racial colorblindness are racist or sexist, or were created by members of a particular race, color, sex, or national origin to oppress members of another race, color, sex, or national origin.
While HB 7’s amendments to the FCRA expressly provide that the amendments "may not be construed to prohibit the discussion" of the foregoing concepts in an objective manner without an employer’s endorsement of such concepts, HB 7 may have a chilling effect on even lawful employer initiated discussions of these concepts given an employee’s ability to bring a private right of action under the FCRA and the litigation risk any such discussions may pose. As with any claim brought under the FCRA, an employee must first exhaust his or her administrative remedies prior to filing a civil lawsuit based on FCRA violations.
HB 7 also amends the Florida Early Learning-20 Education Code by enacting similar restrictions upon student and employee training or instruction. In particular, HB 7 amends Section 1000.05(4)(a), Florida Statutes, to prohibit "training or instruction that espouses, promotes, advances, inculcates, or compels such student or employee to believe any of the [identified] concepts." HB 7 further amends Section 1000.05(4)(a) by identifying the same concepts as those identified in Section 760.10(8) and listed above. Although HB 7 amends other statutes relating to education, such amendments do not relate to labor and employment law.