Columbus Employment Discrimination Attorneys

Last updated on December 23, 2025

Discrimination in the workplace is a violation of state and federal law. When it happens, the direct victim is not the only party who suffers. When employment discrimination is an accepted part of a company’s culture, employees become complacent and even afraid to take action when they face unfair treatment.

When employment discrimination occurs, it is a violation of the victim’s rights. Sometimes, it is an overt rights violation, such as denying a new parent the right to take unpaid leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993. In other cases, it is less clear-cut. To determine if discrimination occurred, the victim must determine if another employee at the company would have been treated the same way under the same circumstances.

Examples of Employment Discrimination

Employment discrimination comes in many forms. Examples of these include:

• Passing over an individual for employment, promotion, or other recognition due to a characteristic like his or her race, religion, or pregnancy
• Terminating an employee because of his or her membership in a protected class
• Maintaining unequal workplace expectations for employees in different classes; for example, expecting women to clean up the office on top of their regular job duties without holding the same expectation for male employees is sex discrimination.

Protected Characteristics

Both federal and Ohio law prohibits an employer from taking a negative employment action because of certain employee characteristics. The current protected characteristics under federal law include:

• Race
• Color
• Religion
• Sex, including pregnancy
• National origin
• Age (40 and older)
• Disability
• Genetic information

Ohio can also protect additional characteristics and has done so. For example, the state protects against discrimination on the basis of ancestry and military status.

What antidiscrimination law boils down to is that your employer cannot take a negative employment action like termination because you possess one of these characteristics. For example, a boss cannot terminate someone for being African American. Likewise, a boss cannot fire someone for being white.

This does not mean an employer can never fire a black or white employee. Instead, the employer needs legitimate reasons, such as poor performance, tardiness, or lack of seniority during a layoff.

Disparate Impact Discrimination

Sometimes, employers adopt policies or rules that apply equally to all employees but nevertheless affect certain employees more heavily. For example, a requirement that workers lift 100 pounds will probably have a disparate impact on women and older workers.

Sometimes, these neutral policies can be discriminatory, even if they were not intended to be. The key is determining whether the policy more negatively affects certain workers with protected characteristics and whether the policy is truly necessary for the business. A requirement that workers lift 100 pounds, for example, might be required for someone to effectively perform the job, so it would not necessarily be illegal.

Harassment and Protected Characteristics

Harassment is a form of workplace discrimination that is illegal. Although many people are aware of sexual harassment, it is not the only type against which the law protects employees. Any workplace that becomes hostile or oppressive because of unwelcome conduct related to your protected characteristic can qualify as harassment.

For example, coworkers might make negative comments about your age and give you demeaning nicknames like “Wrinkly.” If the negative comments and actions occur frequently enough, you might have a legal claim.

Harassment is difficult to analyze on your own. Although one stray comment will not make a work environment harassing, it is often difficult to determine when unwelcome comments and conduct cumulatively cross the line.

Negative Employment Actions

Discrimination law protects against any negative employment action, which can include decisions involving:

• Hiring
• Promotion
• Termination
• Layoff
• Salary and benefits
• Training opportunities
• Work assignments
• Transfers

Many people contact a Columbus discrimination lawyer after being fired, but as you can see, the law protects against much more than wrongful termination. If you feel you have not received a benefit because of discrimination, you should consider your legal options.

Federal and State Laws That Prohibit Employment Discrimination

The primary federal law that prohibits employment discrimination is Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This law guarantees employees the right to fair treatment regardless of their race, sex, religion, national origin, color, age if they are over 40, genetic information, and disability status. Since that law was enacted, other federal laws have been passed to strengthen the original law, adding new protected classes, new rights for employees, and new guidelines for defining acts of discrimination. These laws include the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

Many states have additional employment discrimination laws in place. These laws provide additional protections for employees. Ohio’s anti-discrimination law lists military status and ancestry as protected classes, which are not included in the federal law.

Seeking Compensation for Employment Discrimination Damages

When an individual suffers financial damages because of the employment discrimination he or she faced, such as the cost of obtaining mental health care to deal with the emotional trauma of the discrimination or the compensation and benefits he or she lost due to a wrongful termination, that individual can file a discrimination claim with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to seek compensation for these damages. Compensation could come through a settlement with the company or through a favorable ruling after filing a discrimination lawsuit.

Work With an Experienced Columbus Employment Lawyer

Discrimination in the workplace can cause you to suffer severe financial damages. When you are in this position, you have the right to pursue compensation for these damages with an experienced employment lawyer. To learn more, contact our team at Marshall Forman & Schlein LLC today to set up your initial consultation in our office.