What Are the Types of Workplace Discrimination?

Federal and state anti-discrimination laws protect individuals from discriminatory practices in the workplace.

“A workplace discrimination claim arises when an employee feels that they’ve been fired [or had another adverse employment action taken against them] because of their inclusion in a protected class,” says Lawrence N. Lavigne, an employment litigation attorney in Union, New Jersey.

This article will introduce the laws prohibiting discrimination in the workplace and the steps to take if your employer discriminates against you. If you need to file a workplace discrimination claim against your employer, talk to a local employment discrimination lawyer.

What Is Discrimination in the Workplace?

Discrimination involves unfair treatment of a person in a protected class, including race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, and national origin. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is the main federal agency that enforces employment discrimination laws.

Common types of discrimination include:

• Unfair treatment in employment decisions, from hiring to performance evaluations and termination
• Sexual harassment or a hostile work environment involving supervisors or coworkers
• Refusal to provide reasonable accommodations for a person’s disability or religious beliefs
• Retaliation against employees for whistleblowing or internal complaints
• Improper questions about private matters, such as an employee’s medical history

Disparate work environments are another common example of workplace discrimination claims. “If a female employee thinks she’s getting paid less than a male employee with similar qualifications and responsibilities, that may be a disparate work environment claim,” says Lavigne.

“Similarly, if a member of a minority group is getting the worst job assignments or isn’t getting overtime pay — or if there is any negative treatment relating to the fact that the person is a member of a minority group and isn’t being treated the same as people who aren’t members of that group — it’s a disparate work environment.”

Federal Laws That Protect Employees from Discrimination

There are several federal laws protecting employees from different forms of discrimination.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

Title VII is a federal law that applies to most employers with 15 or more employees. It prohibits several types of workplace discrimination:

• Race discrimination
• Color discrimination
• Ethnicity discrimination
• National origin discrimination
• Sex discrimination (including sexual orientation, gender identity, and pregnancy status)
• Religious discrimination

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

The ADA protects employees from discrimination based on disabilities or perceived disabilities. Employers must provide reasonable accommodations for workers with physical and mental disabilities. Like Title VII, it applies to private employers with 15 or more employees.

Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)

The ADEA law applies to private employers with 20 or more employees. ADEA also applies to federal, state, and local government employers. It prohibits employers from discriminating against employees or job applicants who are 40 years of age or older.

Equal Pay Act

A 1963 amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act, this law prohibits wage discrimination based on the employee’s sex. Men and women must get equal pay for equal work based on similar skill, effort, responsibility, and work conditions.

The Pregnancy Discrimination Act

The Pregnancy Discrimination Act is an amendment to Title VII. It prohibits discrimination based on past, current, or potential pregnancy. The Act also prohibits discrimination related to pregnancy-related medical conditions, like breastfeeding. Employers cannot discriminate against workers based on using birth control or choosing to have or not have an abortion.

The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008

This law prohibits employment discrimination based on genetic information. Genetic discrimination generally involves personal information in medical and genetic tests.

Some States Have Anti-Discrimination Laws That Are Stronger Than Federal Law

Depending on where you live, state anti-discrimination laws may provide stronger protections than federal law.

For example, Lavigne says that New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination “happens to be a little more employee-friendly than the federal counterpart in Title VII. It includes some remedies not available in federal law, like compensation for emotional distress. Also, the court may require employers to pay the plaintiff’s legal fees. While both federal and state laws intend to do the same thing — protect employees from discrimination based on their inclusion in a protected class or their engagement in protected activities — they do it in different ways.”

Lavigne adds that in some states, your only recourse is federal law. “New Jersey’s anti-discrimination law only protects workers in the state of New Jersey, and not every state has good anti-discrimination statutes on the books.”

Deciding Whether To Sue Under State or Federal Law

There is a wide variation between state and federal anti-discrimination laws. “The determination of which court to sue in and which statute to use becomes very important.”

Lavigne says the choice will also vary depending on your specific claim. “For example, whistleblower statutes have a different statute of limitations than discrimination statutes. Some statutes have waiver provisions, meaning that if your claims arise from the same transactions, you have to choose between them. In other words, while you can file both claims, you can’t collect damages under both statutes.”

“The upshot,” says Lavigne, “is that you have to be careful in defining your claim and make sure you take your best shot at winning a lawsuit and getting compensation. What you need to prove and how you go about proving it differs from statute to statute and claim to claim.”

Given the complexity of employment laws and litigation, Lavigne strongly recommends that employees get legal representation if they are considering legal action.

What To Do if You Suspect Workplace Discrimination

If your employer is discriminating against you, here are four steps you can take.

1. Gather Evidence Supporting Your Employment Discrimination Claim

Document your experience by taking notes and gathering evidence. Compile a record of incidents involving your supervisor or coworkers. If you choose to take legal action, you want to have evidence backing your claims.

2. Report to Human Resources

Take the matter to your human resources department. File a complaint in accordance with your workplace policies and procedures.

By giving your employer an opportunity to address the issue, you may be able to resolve the problem early on. If you give your employer an opportunity to address the issue and they fail to take it seriously, having a record of that will help your claim.

3. File a Charge of Discrimination with the EEOC

You can file a discrimination complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), which will investigate your complaint. If the EEOC finds that workplace discrimination has occurred, it can issue you a Notice of Right to Sue. “If you plan to pursue a discrimination lawsuit under federal statutes, you must go through the EEOC and exhaust your administrative remedies before you can sue,” says Lavigne.

He warns that filing a complaint with the EEOC “involves very strict timeframes. It becomes imperative that you reach out to a lawyer the minute you think something wrong is happening.”

State Procedures Differ

If you plan to file a claim under state law, you may not have an administrative exhaustion requirement as under federal law.

“We don’t have a requirement in our Law Against Discrimination that you must go through administrative procedures with the state civil rights agency before you can bring a lawsuit,” says Lavigne of New Jersey. “In the federal system, it’s a must that you go through the EEOC and get a right to sue letter before you can file a lawsuit in federal court.”

Learn more about filing in state versus federal court.

4. File a Discrimination Lawsuit Against Your Employer

After exhausting your administrative remedies with the EEOC (if you’re going through federal court) or trying to internally resolve the issue with your employer, you can file a lawsuit for discrimination.

If you choose to sue, you should speak with an experienced employment litigation attorney about your case.

Find an Experienced Employment Litigation Attorney

If you suspect your employer is discriminating against you, reach out to an employment discrimination law attorney. An attorney can also give you legal advice if you’re not sure if what your employer does is discriminatory.

Visit the Super Lawyers directory to find an experienced discrimination law attorney in your area.