If you’ve been discriminated against because of your race in the workplace in San Francisco, you probably have a cause of action against your employer. Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, a federal law, such actions are illegal. In California, the Fair Employment and Housing Act also makes racial discrimination in the workplace illegal. A person who faced discrimination in California could choose to file a federal or a state lawsuit or perhaps both. The best course of action would depend on the circumstances involved. It may be best to file a claim with the appropriate administrative agency and obtain permission to file a lawsuit first.
Laws against racial discrimination in the workplace do not only apply to minorities or certain people. Anyone at work who is being discriminated against because of race is protected under state and federal laws. Also, the racial discrimination does not have to be done by a boss or a supervisor. Instead, it could be done by anyone in the workplace and is still illegal – supervisors, fellow employees, customers, contractors, or others.
Racial discrimination can come in a wide variety of forms and occur in very difference circumstances. Generally speaking, there are two types of racial discrimination in the workplace: disparate treatment and disparate impact. Disparate treatment happens when a person is treated differently at work because of race. Disparate impact occurs when an employer’s policy results in benefits to one race of people and not to another. Some common examples of racial discrimination at work could include: giving a worker a bad assignment because of their race, failing to promote a person because of their race, or refusing to hire people of a certain race.
Racial discrimination in some circumstances can be hard to prove. If an individual is a minority and is fired, that doesn’t mean racial discrimination occurred. In order to show racial discrimination occurred in California, an employee typically must show that he or she was a member of a protected class, was subjected to an adverse employment condition, and similarly situated employees outside of that protected class were treated differently and more favorably.
If there is direct evidence of discrimination, such as a boss stating he or she preferred employees of a certain race or didn’t want to hire employees of a certain race, that could be very strong evidence in favor of the plaintiff. Such conduct can also rise to the level of harassment based upon race, depending on the facts. However, often it is much harder to prove that racial discrimination in the workplace occurred. Often proving racial discrimination depends on showing statistical evidence that people of different races were treated differently at the company.
It’s important to act quickly if you or someone you know experienced racial discrimination. You should make a complaint with the employer, and in some cases you may also file a lawsuit. You only have a year in which to file a lawsuit based on racial discrimination, so time is not on your side.
At Liberty Law, Micha Star Liberty believes employees should not be subjected to racial discrimination. If you are in the San Francisco area, including Marin County, Santa Clara County, Alameda County, Contra Costa County, or San Mateo County, call Micha Star Liberty, Oakland racial discrimination attorney, at 415-896-1000 or 510-645-1000. She works hard on behalf of employment discrimination victims to ensure that they are treated fairly. Call today.
