Discrimination in any setting or event is wrong. It is hurtful, unfair, and illegal, especially in the workplace. Discrimination is especially harmful in the workplace because it impacts a person’s employment status and ability to be financially successful. Most of us need a job to provide for our dependents and ourselves, and when your job is in jeopardy because you have been discriminated against, you need to speak with a Glendale discrimination attorney who can help you seek recompense for the damages you have suffered.
What Is Discrimination
In general, certain classes of people are protected by federal and California law, which provides that those particular classes are protected from workplace discrimination. This means that an employer may not engage in conduct that negatively impacts a person’s employment for the sole reason that the employee is a member of a protected class. For example, pregnancy is a protected class, and it would, therefore, be illegal to fire an employee because that employee becomes pregnant. Actions that negatively impact someone’s employment include:
- Terminating an employee’s employment
- Treating an employee unfairly
- Refusing to hire a job applicant
- Refusing to promote an employee
- Failing to offer benefits/compensation/privileges offered to other employees
- Demoting an employee
- Refusing to make reasonable accommodations for the employee
In California, protected classes include, but are not limited to, race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, physical disability, mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression, ancestry, medical condition, marital status, age, genetic information, and military or veteran status.
Recovery Available For Discrimination
Recovery in discrimination cases is not limited to financial recovery. In some cases, it may include ordering an employer to take specific actions to rectify their wrongful conduct and damages suffered by the employee. Recovery options may not be the same when you bring a federal employment claim vs. a state employment claim. See below for recovery options that may be available in your case depending on your facts and the type of claim you bring.
- Lost wages include lost wages from the past, ongoing, and future, as well as lost wages resulting from discriminatory conduct.
- Emotional distress is caused by discrimination, including things such as anxiety and depression.
- Punitive damages in order to punish the defendant and deter that type of behavior in the future.
- Attorney fees for the plaintiff’s attorney.
- A court-ordered promotion should the court find that the plaintiff was denied a promotion for discriminatory reasons.
- A court ordered hiring/reinstatement for a plaintiff who lost his or her job as a result of discrimination.
- A court ordering reasonable accommodations to be made for the plaintiff.
No one should have to suffer through the humiliation and distress caused by an employer’s discrimination. If you believe you might be a victim of workplace discrimination, contact a Glendale discrimination attorney at Rager & Yoon – Employment Lawyers to go over the facts of your case. Our discrimination attorneys will look at your employer’s conduct and the damages you suffered as a result and work to see that you ultimately receive the settlement or jury award that you deserve.