US DISCRIMINATION LAW

Discrimination is defined as unfavourable or unfair treatment of a person - or class of persons - because of race, sex, colour, religion, national origin, age, physical/mental handicap or sexual orientation.

Most states and the federal government have laws that prohibit private persons, organizations or governments from discriminating against people because of certain protected characteristics. In employment, individuals are protected from discrimination by employers under the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), the Americans with Disabilities in Employment Act, and other federal and state laws.

However, you can still be legally treated unfairly for all kinds of silly reasons: your eye colour, your personality, or because your boss is a jerk, to name a few. But there are some reasons for unfair treatment that the government makes illegal because they contradict a basic American principle that no one should be penalized for characteristics they were born with or can’t change.

Federal law outlaws discrimination that interferes with important public rights such as religious or political freedom, union membership, eligibility for pension benefits, veteran status and bankruptcy. Your state and local government protect additional characteristics such as marital status and sexual preference. The most common type of discrimination claim is brought against public and private employers for job discrimination.

HAVE YOU BEEN DISCRIMINATED AGAINST?

The first thing to ask yourself is whether you have one or more of the characteristics the law protects. If you do have a protected characteristic, then you have to think about proof. Discrimination cases are notoriously difficult to prove and unless you have evidence of discriminatory motive, you won’t get to first base with your claim.

A discrimination case is usually built on showing a pattern of unfairness against other people with the same protected characteristics. Unfortunately, convincing comparisons often require a fairly sophisticated statistical analysis that many lawyers either don’t want to do or don’t want to spend the money to do right.

Once you’ve decided you have been illegally discriminated against, ask yourself how much you have been damaged. If you only suffered embarrassment and anger and there’s no money loss or psychological distress, the amount of your damages may not be worth the hassle of pursuing it.

GETTING HELP

In order to sue for employment discrimination in federal court you must, in most cases, file a “charge of discrimination” with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) within either 300 or 180 days of the time the discrimination occurred, depending on the state in which you live.

The majority of discrimination charges filed with the EEOC are hurriedly reviewed by overworked investigative staffs and then dismissed with a finding that the agency didn’t have enough evidence to pursue the charge further.

With the finding comes a notice that you now have the right to sue in court. That right expires within 90 days and if you don’t sue during that time, you lose the right forever. In rare cases the EEOC issues a finding of evidence of discrimination and then you have the option of having a government lawyer pursue your case.