Amid growing Islamophobic sentiments in the U.S., religious discrimination in the workplace has been on the rise lately.
Religious freedom, protected by the First Amendment, is no longer respected by many employers in our country.
In fact, since 1997, religious discrimination cases have doubled in the U.S. Workplaces are now as diverse as never become, which serves as the main reason behind the ever-growing number of religious discrimination cases.
How to know if you’re a victim of religious discrimination?
Although both federal and state laws in California protect employees from all forms of discrimination for religious beliefs, collecting evidence of an employee’s discriminatory actions may be a daunting task.
In fact, according to thousands of discrimination claims in the U.S., the employer usually doesn’t manifest signs of religious bias in the hiring process.
Instead, it’s much common for employees to be discriminated against for their religious beliefs in the workplace and/or trying to obtain accommodation for their religious beliefs.
Only an experienced religious discrimination attorney can determine whether an employee is entitled to pursue a claim for religious discrimination. A lawyer will look for the following elements in your case:
- details of the employee’s hiring and termination (if any) process;
- track record of the employee’s salary, commissions, bonuses and promotions compared to other employees in similar positions;
- compensating, assigning or classifying the employee compared to other employees within the organization;
- transferring or laying off employees;
- any signs of harassment and discrimination in the workplace (this step is usually accompanied by gathering witness accounts and other solid evidence).
Here at Rager & Yoon – Employment Lawyers, our religious discrimination attorney will thoroughly investigate your particular case to find evidence and file a lawsuit on your behalf.
While we may try to negotiate an out-of-court settlement with the employer if it helps you obtain the maximum compensation you deserve, we always pave the way for a court settlement of your case.
As practice shows, however, no employer would want to risk his and/or his company’s reputation for a religious discrimination lawsuit. These cases never end well for the employers.
What are the most common religious discrimination claims?
Many religious discrimination claims are caused after the following accommodation requests from employees have been refused:
- setting different arrival and departure times or taking days off to attend religious services / religious holidays;
- making exceptions to the workplace’s dress code and/or grooming policies;
- allowing employees to have times and places to pray;
- exemption of certain functions or responsibilities of the job due to religious beliefs.
If you strongly believe that you’re a victim of religious discrimination, don’t hesitate to call our attorney at 310-527-6994 for a free initial consultation.
Rager & Yoon – Employment Lawyers will help you file a religious discrimination charge with the EEOC in your best interests. Our law firm will look into your particular case to find the most efficient strategy in obtaining the maximum compensation for your damages.
Note: you must file the charge no longer than 180 days after the alleged discriminatory act took place.
After the charge is filed, you and your employer will have the opportunity to settle it out of court. If the claim has grounds for a religious discrimination lawsuit, the charge will go to court.