Personnel Administrator of Mass. v. Feeney

Federal and state governments grant a preference to U.S. military veterans when hiring for government jobs.

Feeney (female plaintiff) was a employee for the state government in Massachusetts in the 1970s. She was repeatedly passed up for promotions; the state civil service agency officials selected male military veterans over her.

Did a facially gender-neutral veterance-hiring preference in year 1979 unlawfully discriminate against women under the Equal Protection clause of the 14th Amendment?

The preference for veterans applied equally to female veterans as male ones.

In the 1970s, very few female veterans existed in comparison to male veterans. At that time, approximately 2% of military veterans were women. Times have changed since the 1970s; women made up 9% of veterans in 2015.

In spite of the disparate impact on women, the Mass. hiring preference for veterans doesn't violate the Equal Protection clause of the 14th Amendment.