Employment Defense Law: Facing Workplace Discrimination 

If you or someone you know is facing workplace discrimination claim, it is important to take essential steps that will help to protect your legal rights as a business owner. While steps can be taken to safeguard an employee’s rights, there are also several factors that should be avoided to protect the business. These factors could potentially impact an outcome in the event that he or she is up against a legal claim against the company.

Different Types of Harassment and Workplace Discrimination

Both state and federal laws prohibit workplace discrimination. Both have established rules and regulations that set to protect an employee from being discriminated against on the basis of the following:

• A person’s skin color,
• race,
• national origin,
• sex or sexual orientation,
• religion,
• incapacities or disabilities,
• age,
• genetic information.

Depending on the state of region, there are other types of legal protections a person may be able to count on. This may involve marital status. If you are facing a workplace discrimination claim, you should know that you have the opportunity to defend yourself and your business. Seek the advice and support of an experienced workplace discrimination defense attorney. An attorney with the right experience can guide you through your options as well as help you gather necessary evidence that can strengthen your defense.

Legal Protection

As previously mentioned, there are both federal and state laws that help to prevent workplace discrimination. It is important to note that individuals are legally protected from the moment they are involved in the hiring process to the time that he or she is fired. For instance, a hiring manager is not legally allowed to fire a person based off of that person’s specific race or because the individual is a pregnant woman. Managers are also not legally allowed to exclude workers who have disabilities from attending company related events or meetings. They also cannot layoff workers based off their age. Further, a manager cannot segregate workers due to their race so that only certain ethnicities have contact with the customers. Regardless of the practices of your business and the integrity of your policies, employees can often feel victimized and file claims without warrant. Simply ignoring the claim or doing nothing is possibly the worst option. You have to right to defend yourself and work towards successfully resolving claims against your business.

Other forms of discrimination that are legally prohibited involve workplace harassment. An employer or other employee cannot belittle or tease a worker due to his or her disabilities. It is also legally prohibited to make sexually explicit statements or remarks, make dirty jokes, or send pornographic videos or pictures to others. This is the law regardless of whether or not the worker is comfortable and otherwise consenting. It is important to note that workers are legally protected when they make a claim against the perpetrator. It is illegal for employers to seek retaliation against a worker who has accused him or her or workplace discrimination and/or harassment. Employees who file claims may already be emotionally charged and even if your policy is by the book, they can interpret it differently, or worse, misrepresent facts. It is important to speak with an attorney as soon as you are aware or a claim, or even a potential claim. 

Obtain Legal Representation

When your business reputation, brand name and profits are on the line, it is important to seek the advice and support of an experienced attorney. An attorney with the right experience can guide you through your available options as well as assist in gathering important documentation that can help to support your case.

The attorneys at the Knez Law Group are experienced in workplace discrimination claims defense. They are a dedicated team of attorneys who have successfully represented many clients who have been involved in situations that involve workplace discrimination or harassment. If you have reason to believe you have been discriminated against, you should consider speaking to an experienced team of attorneys.