Building a Strong Workplace Discrimination Case – Understanding the Essentials

An ideal workplace is a haven of productivity, mutual respect, and harmony. Unfortunately, the reality is far from it, and some employees are subjected to discrimination and a hostile work environment. This hostility typically results from unfair treatment of workers based on their:

• Age
• Disability
• Gender
• Religion and belief
• Race
• Sex
• Relationship status
• Pregnancy and maternity 
• Sexual orientation

It takes the form of discriminatory remarks, mental harassment, and pervasive negativity. Adverse discriminatory behavior also results in poor performance reviews, wrongful termination, denied promotion, or having workers quit. 

The U.S. Federal Law prohibits workplace discrimination and has established several anti-discrimination laws to protect employees and their well-being. Whether it is Title VII and Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Equal Pay Act (“EPA”), or the Immigration and Nationality Act (“INA”), federal and state laws are designed to protect employees’ interests and ensure workplace safety. If you are an immigrant who has faced discrimination at work due to your race, language, or ethnicity, consult Kingsley Szamet employment lawyers to attain justice and fight for your rights.

Common Forms of Workplace Discrimination

• Direct Discrimination: Treating individuals with protected characteristics less favorably than others
• Indirect Discrimination: Involves employers making arrangements and implementing rules for everyone while placing someone with a protected characteristic in an unfavorable position
• Harassment: Defined as unwelcome behavior that violates someone’s space and dignity and creates a hostile situation for them
• Victimization: This involves maltreating someone because they have reported or taken a stand against workplace discrimination or harassment. 

Determining if You are a Victim of Discrimination

You should watch out for a few instances to successfully prove your hostile work environment claim. 

• You are experiencing discriminatory behavior based on protected characteristics, like religion, gender, age, disability, or race.
• You are a victim of misconduct or have been receiving abusive slurs that are long-lasting and pervasive. 
• You are mentally disturbed by the severity of discriminatory behavior.
• You have experienced adverse effects of hostile conduct, like losing a project to a less deserving employee, constantly receiving poor performance evaluation scores, or receiving inappropriate professional benefits proposals. 

How Do You Build a Strong Discrimination Case?

When you are sure you are a victim of workplace discrimination, you can directly contact the employer or HR and report the situation. It will allow them to investigate and rectify the problem. If the outcome is not “effective” and discriminatory behavior persists, you can file a discrimination lawsuit. Here are the tips to file a compelling case in your favor:

Record Everything 

Maintain a diary and note everything, including what happened, how the actions made you feel, and the time and date. Save emails or screenshots of chats and witness statements. These records will come in handy if you consider seeking legal help. 

Preserve Evidence 

If you file a discriminatory complaint and get fired soon after, you will likely lose access to official emails or be unable to retrieve anything from the servers. To avoid this issue, back up all information, from emails, texts, documents, or resources. Make sure not to save anything that breaches the confidentiality agreement.

Understand Your Rights 

Familiarize yourself with federal and state employment laws and understand the relevant statutes. Before filing a lawsuit, understand the EEOC complaint process. Review the guidelines and the practices that are treated as illegal. Also, note the statute of limitations to avoid missing the deadline for filing the case. 

Rope In an Attorney 

Of course, understanding California’s maze-like discrimination laws is complicated. Navigating the legal complications alone will only prolong the case. You can speak to an experienced employment lawyer for professional advice. Seasoned lawyers thoroughly understand federal and California employment discrimination laws to guide you through the process and help you preserve your rights.

Closing: Preventing Discrimination for a Safer Working Environment

Discrimination cases are on the rise. The only way to limit the impact is through employers’ active participation. Company leaders, executives, and managers should commit to creating a safe work environment by establishing strong policies against discrimination and harassment and including potential consequences. They should encourage employees to report harassment cases in confidence and commit to conducting an immediate investigation without retaliation. Only then will employees feel safe, valued, and accepted in their workplace.