Types of Workplace Discrimination in California

There are many ways that employers can violate employee rights. Here are the types of workplace discrimination prohibited in California.

What is Workplace Discrimination?

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is responsible for protecting you from workplace discrimination including employment discrimination because of your race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or age.

Age Discrimination

The Age Discrimination Employment Act forbids age discrimination against people who are age 40 or older. The law prohibits discrimination in any aspect of employment; this includes hiring, firing, pay, job assignments, promotions, layoff, training, benefits, and any other term of employment. It is also unlawful to harass a person because of their age. Although the law doesn’t prohibit teasing, offhand comments, or isolated incidents, harassment is illegal when it occurs frequently and creates a hostile work environment.

Disability Discrimination

Disability discrimination occurs when an employer covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act or the Rehabilitation Act treats a qualified employee or applicant with a disability unfavorably because they have a disability. An employee can show that he or she has a disability in one of three ways:

A person has a disability if he or she has a physical or mental condition that substantially limits a major life activity
A person has a disability if he or she has a history of a disability
A person has a disability if he or she is subject to an adverse employment action and is believed to have a physical or mental impairment that is not transitory and minor

However, an employer doesn’t have to provide accommodations if doing so would cause undue hardship to the employer.

Equal Pay/Compensation Discrimination

The Equal Pay Act requires that men and women in the same workplace be given equal pay for equal work. The jobs need not be identical, but they must be substantially equal. Job content (not job titles) determines whether jobs are substantially equal. All forms of pay are covered by this law, including salary, overtime pay, bonuses, stock options, profit sharing and bonus plans, life insurance, vacation and holiday pay, cleaning or gasoline allowances, hotel accommodations, reimbursement for travel expenses, and benefits. If there is an inequality in wages between men and women, employers may not reduce the wages of either sex to equalize their pay. Title VII also makes it illegal to discriminate based on sex in pay and benefits. Therefore, someone who has an Equal Pay Act claim may also have a claim under Title VII.

National Origin Discrimination

It is unlawful to harass a person because of his or her national origin. Harassment can include, for example, offensive or derogatory remarks about a person’s national origin, accent, or ethnicity. The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA) makes it illegal for an employer to discriminate with respect to hiring, firing, or recruitment/referral for a fee, based upon an individual’s citizenship or immigration status. The law prohibits employers from hiring only U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents unless required to do so by law, regulation, or government contract.

Pregnancy Discrimination

The Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) prohibits discrimination based on pregnancy when it comes to any aspect of employment, including hiring, firing, pay, job assignments, promotions, layoff, training, fringe benefits, such as leave and health insurance, and any other term or condition of employment. Under the PDA, an employer that allows temporarily disabled employees to take disability leave or leave without pay must allow an employee who is temporarily disabled due to pregnancy to do the same. Further, under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) of 1993, a new parent may be eligible for 12 weeks of leave to care for their newborn child. To be eligible, the employee must have worked for the employer for 12 months prior to taking the leave and the employer must have a specified number of employees.

Race Discrimination

Race discrimination involves treating an applicant or employee unfavorably because they are of a certain race, or because of personal characteristics associated with race. It is unlawful for an employer to harass an employee due to that employee’s race or color. Harassment can include:

racial slurs
offensive or derogatory remarks about a person’s race or color
the display of racially offensive symbols

Religious Discrimination

California and federal law protect not only people who belong to traditional, organized religions, such as Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism, but also others who have sincerely held religious, ethical, or moral beliefs. Title VII also prohibits workplace or job segregation based on religion, including religious garb and grooming practice; this includes assigning an employee to a non-customer contact position because of actual or feared customer preference. The law requires an employer or other covered entity to reasonably accommodate an employee’s religious beliefs or practices, unless doing so would cause more than a minimal burden on the operations of the employer’s business.

Sex-Based Discrimination

Discrimination against an individual due to their gender identity, including transgender status, or sexual orientation is discrimination in violation of Title VII. It is unlawful to harass a person because of that person’s sex; legally, sexual orientation and gender identity are relevant to one’s sex. Harassment can include “sexual harassment” or unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature. Harassment does not have to be of a sexual nature, however, and can include offensive remarks about a person’s sex.

Retaliation

EEO laws prohibit punishing applicants or employees for asserting their rights to be free from employment discrimination including harassment. Asserting these EEO rights is called protected activity. For example, it is unlawful to retaliate against applicants or employees for:

Filing or being a witness in an EEOC charge, complaint, investigation, or lawsuit
Communicating with a supervisor or manager about employment discrimination, including harassment
Answering questions during an employer investigation of alleged harassment
Refusing to follow orders that would result in discrimination
Resisting sexual advances, or intervening to protect others
Requesting accommodation of a disability or for a religious practice
Asking managers or co-workers about salary information to uncover potentially discriminatory wages.

Contact Us

If you or a loved one has experienced one of these types of workplace discrimination, contact us. Get your free consultation with one of our California Employment Discrimination Attorneys today! We won’t charge you a dime unless you win your case.