If you are working in Westchester, New York, and you have experienced discrimination on the basis of a protected category, such as race, ethnicity, citizenship status, national origin, age, disability or religion, you have protection that you can certainly rely upon. It is illegal for an employer to discriminate against an employee and there are many different ways that discrimination can present itself.
Westchester County Human Rights Law protects many individuals, including people with disabilities. They are entitled to ask for reasonable accommodations from a covered employer. Reasonable accommodations include the following:
- The proper personal protective equipment, or PPE.
- Schedule modification.
- Being allowed to work from home.
Is the employer obligated to comply?
The employer is obligated to consider every request that an employee makes for a reasonable accommodation. The employer must have a discussion with the employee about the request in order to determine if the requested accommodation would possibly do more harm than good or if there is an alternative accommodation that would achieve the same result that the employee is hoping for.
What sort of protection can I expect?
When it comes to discrimination, there are local, state and federal laws that protect employees. There are many different types of discrimination and sometimes it is not easy to understand that someone is using discriminatory behavior against you at first. The following are some examples of employment discrimination:
- Your boss or a co-worker sexually harasses you at work.
- You are not hired or promoted because of discrimination of one (or more) protected class.
- If you are fired because of discrimination of a protected class.
- If your employer does not have a discussion with you when you request reasonable accommodation.
- If your salary (or wages) are less than your co-workers’ salary because you are in a protected class.
How do I protect my rights against discrimination?
The workforce and the laws that govern the workforce have been evolving over time and many situations and the laws that make allowances for certain situations are different from what they used to be. As an employee in a protected class, it is difficult to navigate all of the situations; however, one thing that has never changed is the fact that you must make sure that your rights are protected at all times. That also means that you will need to be educated about what your rights are and to understand if someone is trying to discriminate against you in some way.
