Workplace Discrimination Happens Everyday Taking on Many Forms of Bias
At the Law Offices of Dan Chern, our Allen Employment Law firm handles many cases involving workplace and employment discrimination. As an employment attorney, I represent many clients with the goal of preventing discrimination on any grounds, from age, race, sex, to religion and disability. Employment discrimination includes bias in wrongful termination, preferential hiring, promotion, job assignment, compensation, retaliation, and several types of harassment.
Workplace discrimination of any type is unlawful and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) legally bars employers from discriminating against applicants or employees because of various factors that reveal an illegal bias. Below you will find (10) different types of discrimination in the workplace.
Disability
It is unlawful for an employer to treat an applicant or employee unfavorably
because he or she has a physical or mental impairment. People with disabilities
are protected by the (
www.ADA.gov) Americans with Disabilities act and the Rehabilitation Act.
Age Bias
Age discrimination happens when an employer treats a potential job applicant
or current employee unequally because of his or her age. Many lawsuits
have been filed where an older employee was terminated or demoted in favor
of a younger employee. This cannot be tolerated under the Age Discrimination
in Employment Act (
www.eeoc.gov/laws/statutes/adea.cfm). The act prohibits discrimination against people aged 40 and older.
Pregnancy
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) prevents employers from discriminating
against women who are pregnant in all aspects of employment-related conduct.
If a female employee cannot perform her job duties temporarily because
of medical issues related to pregnancy or childbirth, she is protected.
Her employer cannot treat her any differently than an employee who is
temporarily disabled.
Retaliation
Laws have been established to protect employees who are whistleblowers
that disclose certain information about their employers. An employer cannot
legally fire, demote, harass or otherwise retaliate against an employee
who has filed discrimination charges or otherwise opposed the illegal
practices occurring in the work place.
Equal Pay/Compensation Discrimination
The Equal Pay Act mandates that women and men in the workplace be awarded
equal pay for equal work (salary, bonuses, vacation pay, etc..). According
to the EEOC states, the jobs to not necessarily have to be identical,
but significantly equal in nature.
Genetic Information
The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) forbids employers
and health insurance companies from discriminating against employees based
on genetic information. Genetic information refers to data about an individual’s
family members, as well as the information about a potential disease or
disorder in the employee or their family members.
National Origin
Employers are not allowed to discriminate against an employee because
of ethnicity or because they appear to come from any particular location.
Race/Color
Discriminating against an applicant or employee due to their certain race
or color of their skin is unlawful in any aspect of employment.
Religion
An employer may not discriminate against an employee or job applicant
based on their religious beliefs. The law extends to all religions, including
Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, all types of religious,
ethical or moral beliefs.
Sex Based Discrimination
Gender based and sexual discrimination takes place when one gender is
preferred for a position over the other. Employers are also not allowed
to discriminate against a transgender individual.
You can see that discrimination in the workplace takes on many forms. If you feel you are the victim of any type of workplace discrimination call Law Offices of Dan Chern, P.C. today and we can meet to discuss the issues you have. Call 972-516-9911 and I can meet with you personally to review your case. You can also visit other pages on this website to see all the areas of law on which we focus.