As used in this article, the term:

(1) "Administrator" means the administrator of the Commission on Equal Opportunity provided for by Code Section 45-19-24, which agency is comprised of an Equal Employment Division and a Fair Housing Division.

(2) "Board" means the Board of Commissioners of the Commission on Equal Opportunity created by Code Section 45-19-23.

(3) "Disability" means a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more of a person's major life activities, unless an employer demonstrates that the employer is unable to accommodate reasonably to an employee's or prospective employee's disability without undue hardship on the conduct of the employer's operation.

(4) "Discrimination" means any direct or indirect act or practice of exclusion, distinction, restriction, segregation, limitation, refusal, denial, or any other act or practice of differentiation or preference in the treatment of a person or persons because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, handicap, or age or the aiding, abetting, inciting, coercing, or compelling of such an act or practice. This term shall not include any direct or indirect act or practice of exclusion, distinction, restriction, segregation, limitation, refusal, denial, or any other act or practice of differentiation or preference in the treatment of a person or persons because of religion if an employer demonstrates that the employer is unable to accommodate reasonably an employee's or prospective employee's religious observance or practice without undue hardship on the conduct of the employer's operation.

(5) "Public employer" or "employer" means any department, board, bureau, commission, authority, or other agency of the state which employs 15 or more employees within the state for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year. A person elected to public office in this state is a public employer with respect to persons holding positions or individuals applying for positions which are subject to the State Merit System of Personnel Administration or any personnel merit system of any agency or authority of this state. A person elected to public office in this state is not a public employer with respect to persons holding positions or individuals applying for positions on such officer's personal staff or on the policy-making level or as immediate advisers with respect to the exercise of the constitutional or legal powers of the office held by such officer. The term "public employer" shall include the State Merit System of Personnel Administration whether or not such agency is the immediate employer of the party or parties claiming to be aggrieved.

(6) "Public employment" means employment by any department, board, bureau, commission, authority, or other agency of the State of Georgia.

(7) "Religion" means all aspects of religious observance and practice as well as belief. (8) "Unlawful practice" means an act or practice declared to be an unlawful practice in Code Sections 45-19-29 through 45-19-31, 45-19-32, or 45-19-45.