Washington DC Employment Lawyer
It’s completely unacceptable to be discriminated against, including in your place of work. If you feel that you’ve been mistreated by your employer and bias or prejudice took place, contact an employment attorney in Washington DC to take legal action.
Discrimination occurs in today’s society more often than it should. Our nation has put numerous labor laws in place to try to prevent prejudice from happening, but unfortunately, mistreatment and bias still occur daily. The work environment is one place where all employees should be protected against such treatment, because this is the place where we spend the majority of our day.
If employees can’t feel safe at work, it can cause our society to crumble. Thankfully, with the help of federal agencies and experienced attorneys, our country is working diligently to stop discrimination whenever an incident arises. At Snider & Associates, LLC, our lawyers understand employment law on a federal and local level and will do everything in their power to ensure employees are protected.
If you’ve experienced discrimination at work, a Washington DC employment lawyer can be your key resource in ensuring your employer is held accountable for their actions and you can go back to work feeling safe again. Hopefully, by filing a claim against your employer, you’ll make a statement so that your employer never discriminates against anyone again.
Nationwide Employment Antidiscrimination Laws
The U.S. Department of Labor has a variety of employment laws in place to protect minority groups from getting mistreated at work. These groups include the elderly, the disabled, those with genetic diseases, pregnant women, immigrants, and more.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is the most prominent antidiscrimination law in the country. It makes it illegal for employers to discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, or national origin.
While these laws help prevent discrimination, they aren’t meant to be abused. For instance, you can’t claim that your employer has discriminated against you based on advanced age if you aren’t over the age of 40.
Washington DC Antidiscrimination Laws
In addition to federal antidiscrimination laws, Washington DC statutes outlaw discrimination on the basis of race color, religion, national origin, sex, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, family responsibilities, political affilitation, or disability. It’s essential for employers to treat their employees equally if they hope to obey Washington DC’s laws.
Preventing Discrimination in the DC Area
Federal laws cover a wide range of types of discrimination, but there are also state and local laws for many areas around the nation.
Washington DC expands upon the nation’s antidiscrimination laws by including an entire section of their legal code on the prohibition on discrimination against the unemployed. An employer in the DC area is not allowed to discriminate against a potential employee in their hiring process simply because they have the current status of unemployed.
Washington DC code also clearly states that retaliation—employers mistreating employees or potential employees because of some action taken on the employee’s part against the employer—is unlawful.
Common Forms of Employment Discrimination in the Workplace
Retaliation is a common form of discrimination in the workplace, which is why Washington DC has made it clear in their legal code that retaliation is an unlawful form of discrimination. Other common forms of discrimination at work can be seen in the hiring and firing process, through bad working conditions, in verbal and sexual harassment, or through lack of pay raises and bonuses.
Your employment lawyer in Washington DC can help you determine whether you have a case by looking at three key points: harm, comparable employee situations, and justification. First, you’ll need to be able to show that harm has been done to you to prove discrimination has taken place. This harm can come in the form of financial harm, physical harm, or emotional harm.
The easiest way to identify discrimination is by comparing your incident to how other employees in comparable job positions are being treated in your office. For example, if you believe that you should’ve been given a promotion and others in your job position received treatment that you were deprived of, this could mean discrimination took place.
Justification will be the final deciding factor. Your employer will have to prove why you didn’t receive the promotion when others on your team did. If this justification isn’t warranted, then your Washington DC case will stand up in the claims process.
Steps to File a Washington DC Workplace Discrimination Claim
To file your discrimination claim, you must go through the DC Office of Human Rights (OHR) or the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). If you file your claim with the EEOC, you must do so within 180 days of when your incident occurred; however, if you’re protected from the specific type of discrimination under both federal and state law, you’ll have 300 days to file a claim.
You can file your claim by mail, by phone, online, or in person at the EEOC office in your area. An EEOC staff member will review your case and may suggest that you and your employer remedy this issue in mediation. If mediation doesn’t work, they’ll investigate further.
Once the EEOC comes to a decision regarding whether discrimination has occurred, they’ll either issue a remedy for your mistreatment or decide that there’s no probable cause for discrimination. You can request reconsideration of their decision or request a notice for a right to sue.
Washington DC’s Employment Discrimination Complaint Process
If you file through the OHR in Washington DC, you must complete an intake questionnaire answering questions about your experience and submit it online, by mail, or in person. You’ll have one year after your incident of discrimination occurs to file a claim.
After you submit your questionnaire, the OHR will schedule an intake appointment within two to four weeks. An intake interview will then take place. Within another two to four weeks, an initial investigation will commence, and mediation between you and your employer may take place. If mediation fails to help, then the OHR will conduct a full investigation.
A full investigation can take up to five months. The OHR’s legal team will propose a determination, and the Director of the OHR will issue a final letter of determination. If you don’t agree with the OHR’s decision, you can request an appeal.
Reach Out to a Washington DC Employment Attorney
Being discriminated against should never be something you accept. It’s important to stand up against your employer and ensure they learn their lesson for the future.
At Snider & Associates, LLC, we’re here to help you seek justice. We can guide you through the claims process and, if necessary, escalate your claim to a lawsuit. You deserve to be heard, and we’re here to speak up on your behalf. If you’re ready to discuss your incident with a Washington DC employment lawyer, call 410-653-9060 or fill out the contact form below.
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