Workplace Civil Rights Lawyer and Attorney

Types of Workplace Civil Rights Discrimination

Majority of cases filed regarding civil rights discrimination that happen at the workplace are related to unfair employment practices in:

• Hiring
• Firing
• Promotion
• Income
• Assignments
• Training
• Benefits

When unfair treatment is applied to a protected class based on the qualities that define that protected class, these actions or inactions become unlawful.

Gender

Discriminating against an employee because of their gender and sexual orientation or preference, along with its stereotyping assumption on job performance just because of gender. An example would be the job post for a construction worker which usually entails hard manual labor, a woman applicant is usually discriminated against due to profiling that women are weaker than men.

Pregnancy

Discriminating against an employee or an applicant because of their pregnancy. Most of the time female employees or applicants are deemed to be treated as if with an ailment that would affect the efficiency of workload because of pregnancy. The presumption of being frail, slow, and unproductive due to pregnancy results in less pay and possible unlawful termination. An example would be a woman employee in line for a promotion but because of being pregnant, it was given to another employee since she would soon be filing for pregnancy leave.

Age

Discriminating against an employee or applicant because of age is illegal and punishable by law. Employees aged 40 years old and older must receive the same benefits and rights as other younger employees have. An example would be an applicant aged 50 years old seeking an internship with an IT company that was screened out and not given even a chance for an interview, since typically the IT industry generally attracts fast-paced young individuals.

Disability

Discriminating against an employee or applicant with a disability is illegal under the ADA (The Americans with Disability Act of 1990). Under ADA, employers are penalized for refusing to hire qualified individuals to work due to solely their disability. Furthermore, in compliance with the ADA, employers are required to provide accommodation for the employee’s disability, unless if with an unreasonable expense to the employer. An example would be an employee who uses a wheelchair to get around who is not provided the accommodations to move around resulting in difficulty for the employee.

Ethnicity

Discriminating against an employee or applicant because of their ethnicity refers to the person’s national origin or ancestry, skin color, accent, and personal characteristics, appearance, and customs. An example would be an applicant who was a strong candidate for the hiring position due to his credentials but as soon as they saw his nation of origin, they immediately took him out of the applicant list.

Religion

Discriminating against an employee or applicant because of their religion, beliefs, customs, and affiliation. The employer is required by law to give reasonable accommodation to the employee’s religious customs. An example would be a Muslim employee during the month of Ramadan who needs to pray at several intervals in a day. The employer must fairly accommodate the employee’s religious practices without any prejudice that may affect his/her employment.