Discrimination in the Workplace
Workplace discrimination is defined as the unjust or prejudicial treatment of someone based on one, a few, or all of the following categories in that person’s place of employment. Under federal law, it may be considered to be illegal if it is made clear by the employee that they are being mistreated solely based on their membership in a protected class. Although protected classes may vary it is very important to understand the types of discrimination and to report any discrimination immediately along with speak with an attorney when you suspect discrimination is under way.
Whats is Race Discrimination?
The law prohibits employers from treating employees differently based on their race, color, or ethnicity.
Examples of this kind of conduct include receiving less pay, receiving less hours, or being passed over for a promotion because of the aforementioned race characteristics.
What is Disability Discrimination?
Similar to racial discrimination, discrimination based on disability occurs when an employer treats an employee differently because of the existence of a disability.
In this case, an employer is required by law to provide the disabled employee with a reasonable accommodation in order to allow the employee to continue to be employed and work as long as it is not a financial burden to the employer.
If you are interested in learning more about the rights of those with disabilities, you might want to check out our article on the Americans With Disabilities Act.
What is Sexual discrimination?
Sexual discrimination in the workplace can sometimes lead up to sexual harassment in a place of business. A harasser can be anyone that comes into contact with the business, including but not limited too, a supervisor, coworker, or even a customer of the business. Sexual harassment can occur in a variety of ways, such as through unwelcome sexual advances like touching, kissing, and hugging, requests for sexual favors in exchange for things like a raise, promotion, or more hours, and comments that can be as simple as “you look good in that outfit.”
What to do if you are a victim?
Safety is always the number one priority in any discrimination case. In the event of any of the aforementioned types of discrimination, it is strongly advised to report the behavior to the suitable department within the workplace and get help when possible from higher up employees, a manager or even the owner. It is important to know that the law requires that the business place be put on notice of the discriminatory practice, in other words you must report the incident and notify that the discrimination is taking place.
What if they retaliate?
In some cases, reporting the incident may not work or may not help and it can even cause retaliation against an employee. Know that there are laws put in place to protect workers! Additionally, retaliation by an employer can lead to more causes of action against the employer. The most important thing to remember is to always consult with an attorney in order to understand your rights.
If you are interested in learning more about what we have to say on retaliation in the workforce, check out our article here. We did not place any information on religious discrimination in this article because we decided to create a whole separate article touching this topic. If you are interested in learning about religious discrimination, click here.
PereGonza The Attorneys can offer a free consultation and give you insight on what the best course of action for your specific case may be. Fill out our personal intake form for more information.
