Sex or Gender Discrimination -Inside and Outside the Office

It is unfortunate that there are so many preconceived notions about gender roles. But these beliefs are established and the only thing that can be done is to prevent them from permeating the workplace.

Some of the gender roles that are common are the belief that women should not work outside the home when they have children.

A good example of this type of gender role-based workplace discrimination involves both of these gender role stereotypes. There was a time when many employers were men; as men, they harbored incorrect thoughts that women with young children should not work outside the home; therefore, these employers would not hire women with children who were under school-age.

Of course, there are still people who believe this, and some of them are women; but these beliefs need to be kept outside the office.

Age Discrimination, Disparate Impact, and The Law

In the state of California, it was recently found that police officers who had been working for a short amount of time and had little experience on the job were given higher pay raises that those officers who had significant seniority, much more experience, but were over the age of forty.

According the Federal Law Title VII, this is age discrimination. But it was not considered disparate treatment; rather, it was considered disparate impact because the discrimination was the result of police department policy rather than direct, intentional discrimination.

This is important for all employers. Disparate impact, since it is not done with malice, is not as harmful as disparate treatment, but it is still very serious. When an employer is thinking of changing company policies, it is imperative that they check that the policies follow both state and federal employment law.

Disparate Treatment Racial Discrimation In Workplace

There are two basic types of racial discrimination that are common in the workplace; the more common one, disparate treatment, is direct and purposefully harmful to the person. Essentially, disparate treatment means that the person being discriminated against is treated in a way that is deemed unfair or is directly discriminated against by the actions of the employer.

For example, when an Iranian man who is an American citizen is treated poorly by his co-workers or his company because of his race and ancestry, this is considered disparate treatment.

The discrimination is directly and purposefully aimed at the man because he is of a certain race. It would also be considered disparate treatment if the same man was passed over for a job position for which he was entirely qualified simply because he was Iranian or had Arabic ancestry.

For more information on discrimination visit: ‘Employment Discrmination Guide‘

Sex or Gender Discrimination Due To Gender Stereotypes

For both women and men, it is important to be able to be yourself all the time, but most specifically in the workplace.

While certain behaviors like poor language and inappropriate humor should always be left at home, a person’s personal and gender traits cannot be expected to be saved for outside the office. This is why gender stereotypes are prevented in anti-sex or gender discrimination law.

An example of gender stereotypes can be applied to both sexes. If a man is passed over for a job solely because he acts too feminine, this would be considered gender discrimination based on gender stereotypes. If a woman is not given a promotion she deserves because her behavior is considered too masculine, she, too, is a victim of gender discrimination based on gender stereotypes. Of course, this has to be provable before it can successfully go to court.

For more information on employment discrimination, visit our website – ‘Employment Discrimination‘

Sexual Orientation Discrimination and California Law

The only state in the United States that has anti-discrimination law for sexual orientation discrimination is California. California has many statutes that protect workers from any discrimination in the workplace regardless of their sexual orientation. One of the more complicated of these issues is in regards to perceived sexual orientation.

Employers who think that one of their employees, or a potential job candidate, is homosexual or of what the employer considers a “questionable” sexual orientation, and fires the person (or does not hire the person) for this, the employer is discriminating against that person due to their perceived sexual orientation.

It does not matter whether or not the person is actually homosexual; California law states that even assumed sexual orientation discrimination is grounds for a lawsuit. The fact that the employer has proven their bias is good enough for a court case.

Workplace Discrimination Hard To Prove

A difficult question to answer is the one where you wonder if you have a workplace discrimination case. Unfortunately it often takes a team of lawyers working around the clock to prove an instance of workplace discrimination.

There are a few issues that lawyers look for when they are examining a workplace discrimination case, and the main issue that they are searching for is why the employee was fired from or not hired for a position in the beginning.

The key to any workplace discrimination case is asking ‘why.’ Why was this person not hired? Why was the person fired? There are a multitude of reasons why a person might not be hired or be fired, but only a few are legally actionable. If the employer wanted to hire his sister-in-law for the same position that you were applying for, he doesn’t have to hire you over her.

On the other hand if your employer finds out you are homosexual and the next day he fires you, you may very well have a good court case.

The reason as to ‘why’ your employer made the decision is the question you have to answer. If you can prove the why and it is definitely a discrimination case, then you can act.

When There Is Workplace Discrimination There Are Problems In The Home

Workplace discrimination is a serious problem that is being addressed, and has been addressed, all over the country for the last four decades. And while there is good, reliable legislation’s in place to protect Americans from workplace discrimination, there are problems that come along with the discrimination that greatly affect the lives of the sufferers.

It is a proven fact that sufferers of workplace discrimination often are not only personally affected by the negativity of the discrimination, but their families are often harmed as well. When a person is suffering at their place of employment, they will often either exclude their families from their problems at the office, or the family will simply suffer from the disruption of the family life due to stresses placed on the sufferer in the workplace. These problems should not be overlooked when addressing the issue of workplace discrimination; the entire family suffers from discrimination.

Sexual Orientation Discrimination in Todays Workplace

Sexual Orientation Discrimination: Federal Law

Sexual orientation discrimination is considered by many people to be an issue of the utmost importance in today’s workplace. No matter where a company or business is located, a person should not be discriminated against because of his or her sexual orientation. The person should be able to be open about his or her sexual orientation if they choose, and should not be shamed because of it.

Unfortunately, the American Federal government does not agree that the issue of sexual orientation discrimination is serious enough to warrant Federal laws preventing it and protecting homosexuals from it in their workplaces. The only state that has laws preventing sexual orientation discrimination in the workplace is California. All other states have lagged behind with this type of anti-discrimination law. The fact that California is the only state to have sexual orientation anti-discrimination laws makes it almost necessary for homosexuals to hide their sexual orientation from their employers.

Pregnancy Discrimination and The Law

Pregnancy Discrimination: Pregnancy Leave

According to the Federal Title VII law, an employer does not have to provide any leave of absence time for a woman to deliver her baby. This may sound odd, and according to California state law, it is. In fact, California state law requires necessary pregnancy leave of four months or less for the expectant mother. This is considered a “reasonable period of time”, and is defined as the time period when the woman is “disabled” and cannot work due to her impending or recent childbirth.

What the Federal Title VII law does support, however, is the necessity of medical leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act. This act requires employers to provide employees with a leave of absence for personal illness or for the illness of an immediate family member. This act also covers pregnant women under Federal law jurisdiction.