More than $482 million was awarded to victims of discrimination in private, federal, state and local government workplaces during the 2016 fiscal year.
Unfair treatment of an employee to due race, age, sexual orientation/identification, country of origin, pregnancy, or religion constitutes workplace discrimination. Federal and state laws exist to protect both employees and applicants from discrimination.
Workplace discrimination may occur more than once. It could begin at any point during the employment cycle, starting with the application and hiring process. Discrimination could extend to after the employee joins the team, affecting the job duties, workplace atmosphere, ability for promotion, rate of compensation and type of discipline.
Qualifications, skill level, and responsibility should be the only merits upon which your employability is measured. Though workplace discrimination is illegal, it may be difficult to prove.
Discrimination Data
A breakdown of discrimination charges filed by employees for the 2016 fiscal year:
Defining Workplace Discrimination
Knowing workplace discrimination when you see it allows you to stay protected, and it gives you the information to seek help if necessary.
Companies and employers have long skewed the definition of “company culture” to exclude one or more employees, based on:
Gender
Gender is an all too common basis for workplace discrimination. Hiring, firing, job assignments, promotions, layoffs and other terms or conditions of employment are not legally allowed based on a person’s gender. Despite anti-discrimination laws already in place, many women and men still face aggressions or deflections in the workplace.
Race
Offhand comments or teasing about a person’s race may escalate to harassment. Employment policies or practices are considered illegal if they are not job-related and aim to negatively impact the employment of a person of a particular race. The same applies to those from a country of origin outside of the United States.
Disabilities
The EEOC defines a disability as “a physical or mental condition that substantially limits talking, walking, seeing, hearing, or learning.” The first of Congress’s findings for the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 states: “[...] physical or mental disabilities in no way diminish a person's right to fully participate in all aspects of society, yet many people with physical or mental disabilities have been precluded from doing so because of discrimination.”
Pregnancy
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 prohibits unfair treatment on the basis of current, past, or potential pregnancy. Medical conditions related to pregnancy or childbirth are also not considered grounds for discrimination. Under U.S. federal law, pregnancy is classified as a temporary disability, which entitles a pregnant employee to the same rights as an employee with limited physical abilities.
Age
Some states do have laws protecting employees under 40 against age discrimination, but only those age 40 and over are federally protected against discriminatory hiring practices. AARP has reported that two out of three workers between ages 45 and 74 say they have seen or experienced age discrimination at work, and job seekers over age 35 cite it as a top obstacle to getting hired. (source)
