A great many of our cases involve discrimination and retaliation. We are heavily involved in cases of discrimination based on race, disability, gender, national origin, and ethnicity.
Race Discrimination
Our firm can assist employees and prospective employees who have been discriminated against due to their race. It is against the law for employers to discriminate against employees or potential employees on the basis of race. Race discrimination in employment can take many different forms: it can be subtle or overt, intentional or unintentional, and can occur before, during, or even after employment. The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, among other sources, provides protection against such discrimination in New Jersey.
Race discrimination in hiring: a few examples of ways employers can discriminate against applicants on the basis of race are: asking for applicants to note their race, and then hiring only applicants of the desired race; giving greater weight to applicants who attended historically white colleges and universities, and less weight to those who attended historically Black colleges and universities; choosing to advertise in magazines and newspapers and on websites which are targeted to audiences of the desired race/s, and avoiding advertising in media which target those of other races; requiring applicants to have specific qualifications which are more likely to be held by those of the desired race, but which actually have no impact on an applicant’s ability to perform the job. There is also evidence that employers are likely to discriminate against applicants who have names which are more common to African-Americans, and in favor of applicants who have names which are more common to whites.
Employees can be discriminated against in many ways, as well. Examples of overt discrimination include: allowing employees to use racial epithets; allowing employees to make racist jokes; and allowing employees to hang nooses in the workplace. More subtle ways in which employees can be discriminated against due to race include: intentionally or unintentionally giving better assignments to employees of the desired race; only inviting employees of the desired race to social events outside of work; and grouping employees by race for work and/or social events, so that employees of races which are undesired by the employer do not get to speak with or be acknowledged by those in power.
In order to be the basis for a lawsuit, race discrimination in employment must result in an adverse employment action, such as termination, demotion, suspension, failure to hire, failure to promote, etc. If an employer takes any of these actions due to an employee’s or applicant’s race, that is race discrimination in employment.
If discrimination/harassment due to race is sufficiently severe or pervasive, it can create a hostile work environment. To constitute a hostile work environment, the conduct must be so severe or pervasive, that a reasonable person of the affected employee’s race would believe that the working conditions were altered, and the working environment was intimidating, hostile or abusive. In this case, the altered environment itself is the adverse employment action.
It is important to note that employers can be held liable for discriminatory actions which their employees take, if the employer knew or should have known about the harassment/discrimination, and failed to take prompt and adequate remedial action.
Do you believe you have been discriminated against in employment due to your race? It’s important to act quickly to find out if you may have a claim of race discrimination in employment. Since every situation is different, an experienced New Jersey employment attorney can help you fully understand your rights in this area.
The attorneys at Hyderally & Associates are ready to help you. They have experience working to fight race discrimination in employment, so they can review your situation to provide information that will help you decide if you would like to pursue a claim against an employer under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, federal law, or the United States or New Jersey Constitution. Call an experienced employment attorney in New Jersey at (973) 509-8500.
This article is for informational purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice, and may not reasonably be relied upon as such. If you face a legal issue, you should consult a qualified attorney for independent legal advice with regard to your particular set of facts. This article may constitute attorney advertising. This article is not intended to communicate with anyone in a state or other jurisdiction where such an article may fail to comply with all laws and ethical rules of that state or jurisdiction.