Equality is the minimum that you can ask of people. Everyone deserves to be treated equally no matter who you are, because after all, everyone is human, right? 

Unfortunately, not everyone treats people equally, and as much as people try to ignore it, discrimination is still very prevalent today. 

Even inside somewhere as professional as your workplace!

That’s scary right? 

But there is legal action you can take for discriminatory behaviour that is targeted towards you in the workplace. 

At HKM Employment Attorneys, you can speak to an experienced discrimination lawyer if you have been victim to employment discrimination.

But first…

What Exactly is Employment Discrimination?

Discrimination is defined as hostile or negative actions taken towards someone because they belong to a protected class, such as race, color, age, gender, sexual orientation, disability, religion, national origin, pregnancy status and more. 

When these hostile or negative actions occur in the workplace, this is classified as ‘employment discrimination’.

Employment discrimination occurs when an employer discriminates against an employee because of particular characteristics of that person. 

This can take place through types of hostile employment actions such as:

• Cutting work hours
• Cutting pay
• Suspension
• Refusing to hire 
• Demotions
• Firing 
• Transferring to a worse location
• Disciplining
• Giving poor performance reviews

That sounds ridiculous doesn’t it!

Not to worry, Federal and State laws can protect employees against discrimination if these rights are violated, meaning an employment law attorney can enforce these laws.

If you feel as if this has happened within your workplace, make sure you know how to submit an employment discrimination complaint or speak to an experienced employment lawyer to understand if your rights have been violated.

It is super important to know your basic human rights! So, a run-through of employment discrimination laws should keep you up to speed if you ever find yourself in a situation like this…

Federal Discrimination Protection:

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 – no discriminating or harassment of an employee/applicant based on:

• Race
• Color
• Sex (gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, and pregnancy)
• Religion
• National origin

Age Discrimination in Employment Act – no discriminating of people based on their age in the workplace, if they are 40 years or older.

Equal Pay Act of 1963 – no discriminating of employees based on gender. Pay for men and women must be equal. 

Equal work equals equal pay, right?

Americans with Disabilities Act – no discriminating against those with a disability (even if it is not visible). Employers should be accommodating to those with a disability!

Pregnancy Discrimination Act – no discrimination of an employee based on their pregnancy status.

State Discrimination Protection

If you’re from Maryland, you should also definitely be aware that Maryland actually has its own state laws that allow employees to be protected from workplace discrimination.

Maryland Fair Employment Practices Act (FEPA) – no hiring, firing, or discriminating against a person, based on employer retaliation of an employee’s claim of discrimination based on these characteristics:

• Sex
• Gender identity
• Color
• Age
• Religion
• National origin
• Age
• Marital status
• Disability
• Sexual orientation
• Genetic information/refusing to provide a genetic test 

Maryland CROWN Act

Protect your crown by knowing that there is no discriminating against an employee based on traits associated with their race. This includes hair texture such as protective hairstyles like dreadlocks, twists and braids, and afro hairstyles.

If you feel you have been discriminated against, be sure to contact HKM Employment Attorneys to protect yourself and your rights!