Discrimination at work
When the term discrimination is mixed with employment law, it usually refers to any unfair action based on prejudice that degrades or affects employees. Discrimination is prohibited by law, in all states and these in turn have fairly strict laws that prohibit it.
And there is more than one type of discriminatory act and countless factors for which a person suffers discrimination, in this post we will mention the five most frequent cases of employment discrimination.
Sexual Harassment
Qualified as sex discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC generally categorized as “unwanted sexual advances” or similar actions that create a hostile work environment.
Despite the passage of time and centuries of
human evolution, gender discrimination continues to be a latent problem, even since laws such as Title VII or the Equal Pay Act were enacted to try to combat the problem.
Any mistreatment due to the gender of the employee can be classified as discriminatory and that this can affect any action related to work, from the hiring decision to promotions.
Another
uncomfortable reality is that many people are still victims of discrimination because of their race or national heritage. An employer who provokes some public act of racial discrimination runs the risk of suffering a heavy fine if any of its employees decide to sue. Many states make it really easy for employees to file racial discrimination lawsuits through the special state agency.
Disability Discrimination This is a relative issue since certain conditions apply, although most states have laws prohibiting discrimination based on an employee’s disability. This is not to say that people should be hired for any job they wish to apply for which they are not qualified, because they require a certain set of knowledge or a lot of skill. But it does mean that a potential employee capable of fulfilling the required job should not be treated unfairly or demoted by a disability, whatever it may be.
Age
discrimination All people, both elderly and young workers, are exposed to the possibility of being victims of age discrimination. Employers are usually not allowed to hire, fire, or promote an employee because of his or her age. Although being a victim of age discrimination is not easy to prove, especially getting evidence of why an act of age discrimination is incited or a simple belief that underestimates the ability of a highly skilled worker but may not appear so at first glance. Fortunately, the law is garnished with a large number of procedures to determine age discrimination cases and also many ways to file a lawsuit and assert your rights.
If a person who holds a higher position or is higher up the corporate hierarchy and who has some kind of authority over you for no reason starts negotiating and suggesting sexual favors in exchange for a promotion or job security, then you are facing a potential case of sexual harassment.
Discrimination and harassment can be masked in very different ways, some more subtle than others. The truth is that laws prohibiting discrimination and harassment exist, they have been arranged to help you defend your rights against employment discrimination for any reason whether motivated by origin of race, color, nationality, sex, religion, disability.Activity, pregnancy and age. State and local laws may contain many types of protective measures for various cases of employment discrimination.
If you are an employee, and you feel that you are being discriminated against or harassed by a superior or any co-worker,what options are there and what should you do?
It is recommended to express the dissatisfaction caused by the feeling of discrimination to the person in question either your employer, It is complex to develop a legal process for employment discrimination at the beginning since the people who promote it rarely recognize their lack and the people who are victims tend to intimidate themselves and pause defensive action. Many illegal acts of discrimination and harassment occur due to xenophobia, pregnancy, even postpartum are not recognized and remain unpunished because the victim does not make it clear that the behavior is untimely. It is rare for employers to collaborate with the legal process such as drafting documents, especially if it is against them, legal against them. Legally speaking your employer is required to comply with the law, but you are primarily responsible for making sure you protect your rights. Many Latinos suffer discrimination and receive lower wages than most, even suffering from labor exploitation being deprived of their vacations.
You should let the person who is discriminating against you know that you are taking matters into your own hands and are not playing. Ask for a written report each time you make a notification of an incident of discrimination.
Call for an investigation into your allegations and for rigorous action to be taken on your harasser.
There have also been hundreds of cases of false accusations of discrimination either because there are people too susceptible even some with treachery plan to unfairly accuse another person of sexual harassment or discrimination for revenge, being innocent. These acts can backfire on the person attempting to make an illegal claim and may face felony charges.
As in any case of legal claim we advise to keep a record with all the evidence of the incidents. Write down all the data even those that you consider irrelevant, some useful data are the date, the approximate time, the location, the witnesses and details of the conduct of your counterpart.
Review the federal and state laws that are available on any website, preferably with the advice of employment lawyers, also be aware of your company’s anti-discrimination policy
State anti-discrimination laws vary widely, depending on the jurisdiction to which they are subject and may be different in each state. Review your state’s legal code.
An attorney is the right person to help you understand the complex laws that may apply in your favor. If you have been a victim of employment discrimination or harassment do not hesitate to consult with a professional the difference will be noticed in the result.