Title VII of the Civil Rights Acts protects employees and applicants for employment against discrimination because of his/her race, color, national origin, sex, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, or parental status in regard to hiring, termination, promotion, compensation, job training, or any other term, condition or privilege of employment.

Relevant Provisions:

• Executive Order 11246 prohibits federal government contractors and subcontractors with contracts exceeding $10,000 from discriminating against employees and applicants on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. 

• Religious Discrimination Provision prohibits religious discrimination.  Employers must reasonably accommodate the religious observances and practices of an employee or prospective employee unless the employer is able to demonstrate that such accommodation would result in undue hardship to the employer.

• The Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 prohibits discrimination in all areas of employment on the basis of pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions. Employers must treat pregnancy the same as other disabilities.

• The Equal Pay Act (EPA) of 1963, amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA), prohibits compensation discrimination on the basis of an employee's sex.  This codifies "equal pay for equal work."

• Sexual Harassment Provision prohibits employment discrimination based on an individual's sex.  Sexual harassment, a recognized form of sex discrimination, is defined by the EEOC as "[u]nwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature," which if rejected could affect an individual's employment status, opportunities or work performance or could create a hostile work environment.

http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/vii.html