Race is another federally protected characteristic in workers across California, often taken for granted by employers. Discriminating immutable features such as facial hair, skin color, or other appearances that uniquely identify people of various lineages are litigable offenses taken seriously by JML Law, APLC, an aggressive Los Angeles racial discrimination attorney working for the people working in California.
Interchangeable with yet different than color, racial discrimination violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. Color references pigmentation, while race identifies with facial features, bone structure, eyes, and hair. Ethnicity may closely identify with race, although ethnical features include nationality, ancestry, language, and culture. All human characteristics above are protected, and violations may merit civil action.
Suspect Of Racial Discrimination Don’t Wait
Identifying racial disparity probably wasn’t hard if you’ve been victimized. People called you racially-charged names, segregated you from other employees, worked you longer hours than others, paid you much less for equal skill, and even fired you because your race didn’t meld with others at work. Once identified, racial discrimination breaks down communications with employers, not to mention making victims like yourself feel socially inadequate. For your grief, we truly apologize.
JML Law, APLC steps up when employers breach Civil Rights Act statutes. No representation matters unless it’s unbiased and comprehensive from start to finish, which every client gets when retaining our services. Racially motivated harassment, segregation, and even purposely putting job fairs where only one race will benefit are forms of intolerable discrimination victims may seek compensation for, and our Los Angeles racial discrimination attorney frequently gets.
Overt racial discrimination claims must start with EEOC and carry a 180-day statute of limitations. JML Law, APLC may assist victims with claims, appeals process, and filings with local courts and state agencies. The EEOC may clear victims to leave work during this process, in which employers may not retaliate when granted. If any compensation comes out of civil due process, it’ll be awarded for pain and suffering and loss of opportunity created by the employer who discriminated.
Witnesses to racial disparity are encouraged, where possible. More voices added to claims can only help improve chances, so victims should have names and numbers of those willing to testify on their behalf.
Understanding Disparate Treatment & Disparate Impact In Los Angeles Racial Discrimination Cases
It is sometimes apparent when an employer engages in discrimination once their behavior, actions, or policies have been thoroughly documented. For example, it can be shown that an employer has a consistent history of denying promotions to members of a certain race. In that case, it should be evident that they have been discriminating against employees of that race and doing so intentionally.
This is an example of workplace racial discrimination that can be considered to represent “disparate treatment.” As the name implies, the disparate treatment form of racial discrimination involves an employer treating certain workers differently because of their race.
Again, this type of discrimination is usually intentional. Other examples of it include (but are not limited to):
- Not hiring members of a certain race.
- Using slurs or otherwise mistreating someone because of their race.
- Not allowing members of a certain race to participate in training programs.
- Disciplining some employees more harshly than others due to their racial identity.
However, racial discrimination can also occur even when an employer is not intentionally discriminating against certain employees. The disparate impact form of workplace racial discrimination involves discrimination occurring when a company policy ends up disproportionately unfairly affecting certain racial groups. This discrimination is unacceptable when the policy does not serve a legitimate business need.
The Roots Of Disparate Impact of Racial Discrimination
The disparate impact form of discrimination was explored and essentially defined in the Griggs v. Duke Power Co. Supreme Court case 1970. The origins of this case date back to the 1950s, when it became apparent to several Black workers at Duke Power’s Dan River Steam Station in North Carolina that they were being prevented from maximizing their earning potential due to unfair internal policies.
Essentially, the company had four departments. The Labor Department was where most of the lowest-paying jobs were found. The highest-paying jobs in the labor department still paid less than the lowest-paying jobs in every other department in the company.
To work in a department other than the labor department, an employee had to meet certain qualifications that did not necessarily pertain to their ability to perform the assigned tasks. One such qualification was having a high school diploma.
In this historical context, many black employees did not have high school diplomas and thus could only work in the Labor department. Luckily, the Supreme Court determined that except when a policy serves a legitimate business need, a policy can be considered discriminatory if it unfairly negatively impacts members of protected classes.
Keep this in mind if you’re not sure whether you have grounds to take legal action against an employer for workplace racial discrimination. Even if the discrimination you have experienced has not been overt, you may still be discriminated against due to company policies that might not have technically been designed to discriminate against employees based on race. Discuss your case with a Los Angeles racial discrimination attorney for more information.
Trust Civil Rights Lawyers Who Care
We’ve put 40 years into the community we serve, fighting alongside individuals racially disparaged while working for companies around the area. Our Los Angeles racial discrimination attorney works closely with victims who’ve been terminated, paid less, denied promotion, or incessantly harassed without just cause simply because they’re of one specific race.
As the victim’s claim works through administrative and legal processes, our team further gathers evidence to substantiate claims. This helps shift the burden of proof onto the employer, who must then irrefutably prove that their reasoning for racial discrimination was justified, which they rarely do.
Consulting with our attorney costs nothing. Vindication victims receive once claims are favorably settled is priceless, so don’t delay – contact JML Law, APLC by phone, email, or visit one of our locations.
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Every case is unique and needs to be evaluated by our experienced lawyers. If you have experienced racial discrimination in Los Angeles,
