The 8 Most Common Forms of Workplace Discrimination

The word discrimination is a hot topic among news outlets, but understanding what it really means could be unclear to many workers. To fall under this category, an employee is mistreated or harassed because of a protected class.

While there is a seemingly endless list of reasons why an employee could be treated unfairly, there are eight common forms of workplace discrimination. Keep reading to learn more from our lawyers at LNN.

The Most Common Forms of Workplace Discrimination

Workplace discrimination typically revolves around protected characteristics like the staff member’s age, gender, race, religion, or disability. The most common forms of unfair treatment include:

• Retaliation: This is the most common form of workplace harassment, and it happens when an employee reports and participates in an investigation into any type of discrimination.
• Sex: While gender may instantly come to mind, sexual discrimination also encompasses sexual harassment, pregnancy, sexual orientation, and transgender status.
• Race: Companies are prohibited under the Civil Rights Act of 1964 from treating an employee or candidate unfairly because of their race or the color of their skin.
• Disability: Individuals with mental and physical disabilities are also protected from discrimination under federal law. Companies are required to provide those affected employees with reasonable accommodations.
• Age: Individuals 40 years of age or older who are re-entering the workforce or aiming for a promotion, for example, may unfairly experience age discrimination.
• Religion: Companies, co-workers, and supervisors are also prohibited from treating employees differently because of their religious beliefs and practices.
• National Origin: Similar to race, it is illegal to discriminate against an individual in the workplace due to national origin, regardless of race.
• Genetic or Medical Information: Improperly requesting or disclosing your genetic information or questions about your protected medical information may also lead to a common form of workplace discrimination.

What To Do If You Have Faced Workplace Discrimination

In the U.S., the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is the governmental agency that protects individuals from workplace discrimination. The first step is to gather as much evidence as you are able, then report the incident to your company’s HR representative.

If the issues remain unresolved, you may have to file an official complaint with the EEOC or your state’s Fair Employment Practices Agency. An experienced attorney would explain your legal rights, guide you through the process, and ensure you meet strict filing deadlines.

How to Distinguish Between Direct and Subtle Workplace Discrimination

Employees may be subject to more subtle forms of discrimination; however, they are more difficult to challenge as disparate treatment. For example, an employer might impose hairstyle or clothing restrictions that are contrary to an employee’s religious beliefs, or establish workplace rules that more adversely affect some employees than others, such as allowing only full-time in-office work, knowing that women might need more flexible arrangements for childcare purposes. 

Lawsuits for these more subtle forms of workplace discrimination require more detailed allegations and evidence of patterns that harm protected employees over longer periods of time. If you suspect that your employer is utilizing subtle means of making your work life difficult, you should:

• Keep a detailed chronological log of discriminatory events, with dates, times, and lists of other employees who saw unfair treatment or heard statements made by managers or co-workers
• Retain your pay stubs and copies of performance appraisals
• Hold on to warnings or corrective actions issued to you and other employees in similar situations, and record your efforts to fix issues that were brought to your attention
• Ask to see your personnel file to verify that everything in it is complete and accurate
• Make notes of microaggressions, such as disparaging comments or complaints about your appearance, regardless of how minor those comments might seem to be.

A knowledgeable legal team can provide additional guidance on what you can do if you are a victim of subtle workplace discrimination.

When Should You Start a Workplace Discrimination Lawsuit?

You have 300 days after a harassment incident to file a complaint with the EEOC, but three years to start an action with the California Civil Rights Department. Direct workplace discrimination incidents, particularly if they are among the 8 most common forms of harassment, will establish clear deadlines for filing your complaint. Subtle workplace discrimination, however, generally does not provide an easily calculated deadline. The discriminatory conduct may take place over weeks or months, and what starts out as innocuous comments or behavior can escalate over time into more obvious discrimination.

To avoid missing important filing deadlines, you should consult with a lawyer as soon as you sense that something is amiss at your workplace. Lawyers who protect workers from discriminatory conduct generally offer complimentary consultations and evaluations of your right to file a workplace discrimination action. If the suspected conduct does not rise to the level of discrimination, your lawyer can suggest strategies for you to continue monitoring your workplace for improper actions that may be more apparent and that might trigger a filing deadline. 

In every situation, your best strategy is to talk to a lawyer who understands what is needed to file a case and who can aggressively pursue your rights and remedies for the adverse consequences of workplace discrimination.

Contact An Attorney Who Fights Workplace Discrimination

These eight most common forms of workplace discrimination affect thousands of California residents each year. Facing unfair treatment on the job could lead to a long list of health problems, from stress and anxiety to depression, as well as career-related consequences, such as a job loss or reduced wages.

If you are the victim of workplace discrimination, reach out to our Los Angeles-based law firm for compassionate assistance. Whether you and your LNN Trial Lawyers decide to go through mediation or sue your employer for workplace discrimination, we are always on your side.