Workplace discrimination based on age, gender, sexual orientation, race and religion is not tolerated in New York. Employees have the right to work in a workplace free from all types of discrimination. A worker who has experienced workplace discrimination can take advantage of the law to ensure that the same incident does not happen again. Doing so also promotes awareness that anyone can be a victim of discrimination and employers as well as co-workers can be held liable if the discrimination is proven.
Recently, MSA Security was accused of employment discrimination. Based on the report, a former company official and a former chief executive of the security firm tolerated racial harassment against an African-American employee. The lawsuit claimed that the woman endured the harassment for two years.
The security firm stated that the company will defend itself from the allegations.
Discrimination inside the workplace does happen. However, some workers fear that they may lose their job once they file a claim against their employer or a co-worker and choose to remain silent. Employer’s retaliation often happens when an employee reports incidents of workplace discrimination. Instead of promoting a discrimination-free environment, some employers tolerate such acts, which, in turn, affect the emotional well-being of the victim.
Workers who have experienced workplace discrimination need to know that they can report such incidents to the management and if that does not work, they can proceed with filing a lawsuit against the abuser. Filing the lawsuit alone may not work, especially if the victim is dealing with an employer.
Here in Westchester, New York, some cases of race discrimination are settled out of court as some companies aim to protect their reputation. The lawsuit can also be settled in court.
Source: Morning Times, “Lawsuit filed against firm with NYC contracts,” Nov. 27, 2013
