Lawmakers go to great lengths to protect employees from discrimination in Glendale and throughout the state of California. Unfortunately, discrimination still occurs and racial discrimination is one of the most frequently reported types of discrimination that employees experience in the workplace. Also unfortunate is that employees who experience racial discrimination at work often do not report it for a number of reasons including the following:
- Fear of retaliation such as getting fired, demoted, or otherwise punished
- Not wanting to look like a trouble maker
- Fear of not being believed
- Fear of supervisors and coworkers gossiping about the situation
- Not wanting to appear overly sensitive
- Not wanting to look like the employee that cries racism
If you have been the victim of racial discrimination at work, contact our Glendale racial discrimination attorneys at Rager & Yoon – Employment Lawyers who will work to see that not only do you receive the remedies and compensation that you deserve, but also see that you are protected from employer retaliation. Retaliation for reporting discrimination is illegal and if it occurs, you are entitled to remedies and compensation.
Racial And Color Discrimination
Racial discrimination in the workplace occurs when someone is unfairly treated or employment decisions are made based on someone’s race. Color discrimination also occurs in the workplace. That is when an employee is favored or treated unfavorably based on their skin tone or complexion. In this scenario, employees may be members of the same race, but some may be treated better and some may be treated worse, depending on the color of their skin.
Racial and color discrimination can occur in many different ways in the employment context. Actions and decisions impacting employment such as failing to hire or promote, transfer, work assignments, recruiting, training, discipline and discharge, wages and benefits are illegal if they are made on the basis of race or color. It is also illegal to make actions and decisions that impact employment based on an employee being in a relationship with someone of a different race or having children of a different race.
Disparate Impact And The Fair Chance Act
Racial discrimination is sometimes not outwardly racist. When policies and decisions result in a disparate impact on one particular race or on minorities as a whole, an employer must prove that the reason behind the policy or decision was related to business and not just a pretext for racial discrimination.
California’s Fair Chance Act was implemented in an effort to reduce disparities in the workforce related to criminal records and salary history. In an effort to ensure that job offers or denials are based on an applicant’s qualifications and not their criminal records, employers are prohibited from inquiring about a job candidate’s prior salary and employers may not ask about criminal records or conduct a criminal background check until after they have extended a job offer.
Our Glendale racial discrimination attorneys have experienced employment law experts who want to see that employees are protected from unfair and illegal workplace conduct. We also want to see that victims of discrimination receive compensation that, depending on the circumstances, may include lost wages, lost future wages, emotional distress, job hire or reinstatement, promotions, attorney fees, and punitive damages.