- Marquette321 N Front St
Marquette, MI 49855 - Munising202 Elm Ave, Ste 5
Munising, MI 49862
If you are a victim of racial discrimination in your Marquette County workplace, it’s important to understand your rights as a member of a protected class and an employee in Michigan. As such, taking the necessary steps, like filing an internal report and submitting a claim to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), is critical in protecting your rights. As such, acting quickly and under the guidance of an experienced employment discrimination attorney can help improve your chances of receiving corrective action or even financial compensation.
The United States has a long and fraught history of racial marginalization and exploitation. Comparatively recent historical attempts to push back and reverse this history have led to some state but mostly federal legislation meant to criminalize racial discrimination in various fields. The workplace is no exception.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 defines discrimination as denying someone employment, demoting them, firing them, paying them less, or acting less friendly and supportively than you otherwise would because of a specific protected characteristic. The United States recognizes race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, and some kinds of veteran status as protected characteristics. Discrimination would also include prohibiting employees from talking about their own pay, their coworkers’ pay, and the pay offered to job applicants.
Harassment, as included in the definition of discrimination, can refer to racial slurs, disrespectful and degrading comments on someone’s race or color, and symbols with a threatening history. When this harassment makes the environment around someone hostile or offensive, or when harassment is expressed through unfavorable employment consequences, it is discrimination in the eyes of the law.
Both federal and Michigan state law prohibit discrimination in the workplace, and employers can face liability for encouraging or allowing these behaviors.
Under both United States federal law and Michigan state law, employees are legally protected from harassment and discrimination at their place of work. It’s critical to understand that these protections extend from the interview and hiring process through the actual course of your employment and even protect you from retaliation if you report unlawful behavior.
The first step would be to file a Charge of Discrimination, or a signed statement saying that you were discriminated in your employment by an employer, union, or labor organization. If you know of a situation where someone has been discriminated against, you can also file on their behalf without revealing their identity, for their protection.
A Charge of Discrimination asks the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to investigate the case and take remedial action. Most of the laws that Congress has charged the EEOC with enforcing, minus the Equal Pay Act, say that a petitioner needs to file a claim with the EEOC before attempting a lawsuit.
If your EEOC claim is successful, you may have a wide range of remedies available to you. These are meant to make you whole, returning you to the situation you would have occupied had the other party never discriminated against you.
If you have experienced racial discrimination at your place of work, it’s important to understand your legal options. That is why it’s in our best interest to connect with an experienced attorney at Berger Law. Our firm understands how overwhelming these matters can be to navigate, which is why we will do everything in our power to help you fight for the best possible outcome. Contact us today to learn how we can represent you.
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