Newark Discrimination Attorneys

Employers have the right to effectively operate their businesses. This includes expecting employees to perform their jobs to the best of their ability, and requiring employees to be punctual and have good attendance. However, regardless of a company’s business needs, there are limits as to how employers may treat their employees. Employers are not allowed to discriminate against employees based on certain characteristics, such as age, race, disability, gender, and other characteristics prohibited by law. If they do, employees can hold them accountable by filing a charge of discrimination with the Ohio Civil Rights Commission and/or Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and depending on the circumstances, file a lawsuit. The Newark discrimination attorneys at Marshall Forman & Schlein LLC are prepared to help with your fight. Remedies may include reinstatement to a job, compensation for back pay and front pay, and payment of attorney’s fees and costs.

Protected Classes

There are different protected groups or classes of people who share certain characteristics according to federal law. These characteristics or traits include:

• Race
• Sex
• Gender
• National origin
• Religion
• Disability
• Pregnancy
• Military service

There are many types of federal legislation that protect these classes of people with these characteristics or traits from discrimination. Examples include the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, and the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). 

How to Recognize Workplace Discrimination

Sometimes employees may feel as though they are being discriminated against, but they are not sure. Before taking legal action, it is important to understand whether you are, in fact, facing discrimination or if there is some other reason for the treatment you are receiving. Some of the signs of discrimination may include:

• A work environment that lacks diversity and allows jokes, slurs, and disparaging remarks about race, sex, age, religion, or disability to frequently occur without consequences.
• Stereotypical roles for men and women, such as having only men being in managerial positions and only women in administrative roles.
• Continually being overlooked or denied promotions for which you are qualified
• Changes in workload, such as being given an unmanageable amount of work or a manager taking away important responsibilities seemingly based on characteristics such as sex, race, age, or national origin.
• Disparate treatment in discipline where you are disciplined more harshly for the same offense than similarly situated employees.

These are just a few of the signs that you could be facing discrimination in the workplace. An attorney can assess the situation and determine if you have a valid discrimination case.

Proving Workplace Discrimination

Sometimes it can be difficult for employees to know if they are actually being discriminated against or simply a victim of unfair treatment or favoritism. Proving employment discrimination in a court of law can be even more challenging. To meet the minimum requirements for a lawsuit, an employee must be able to show:

• He or she is a member of a protected class,
• The employee was qualified for a certain position or opportunity, such as a promotion,
• The employee was  subject to a materially adverse employment action, such as being denied a promotion or was fired, and, 
• A person who is not in the employee’s protected class was treated more favorably in the material terms of employment than the employee.

A workplace discrimination attorney can help individuals determine if they can satisfy these elements and if so, take appropriate legal action. After these elements are established, the burden of proof then transfers to the employer to prove that they had a legitimate non-discriminatory business reason for employment actions taken. An employee then has the burden of proving that the employer’s reason was a pretext or excuse for discrimination.

Call an Ohio Workplace Discrimination Attorney Today

It is a terrible feeling to think you are being discriminated against at work, but unfortunately, that feeling alone is not enough to win a legal case. If you think you are facing discrimination, contact our Newark discrimination attorneys at Marshall Forman & Schlein LLC today. We will evaluate your potential case and advise if we think unlawful workplace discrimination has occurred. Call us today or contact us online to schedule a meeting with one of our attorneys.