Workplace Discrimination
Business Law
Workplace Discrimination
Discrimination occurs when an employee suffers from unfavorable or unfair treatment due to their race, religion, national origin, disabled or veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. Employees who have suffered reprisals for opposing workplace discrimination or for reporting violations to the authorities are also considered to be discriminated against. Federal law prohibits discrimination in work-related areas, such as recruiting, hiring, job evaluations, promotion policies, training, compensation and disciplinary action. (employeeissues.com, 2006)
Aside from the obvious, unfair treatment does not always equal unlawful discrimination. Treating a person differently from others violates Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) laws only when the treatment is based on the presence of a protected characteristic, rather than on job performance or even on something as arbitrary as an employee's personality. Discrimination claims can sometimes be highly subjective. (employeeissues.com, 2006)
Discrimination accusations are best avoided by following the law which requires only that you extend the same employment opportunities and enforce the same policies for each employee.
DISCRIMINATION LAWS
Discrimination laws exist to prevent discrimination based on race, sex, religion, national origin, physical disability, and age by employers. The main discriminatory practices identified today are bias in hiring, promotion, job assignment, termination, compensation, and various types of harassment. The following paragraphs outline the most common anti-discrimination laws today. (allbusiness.com, 2006)
The Equal Pay Act amended the Fair Labor Standards Ac ...