Discrimination in the Workplace
Contact Us About DiscriminationUnder our Federal laws, everyone in the United States is protected from employee discrimination based on: age, disability, sexual orientation, national origin, religion and sex. In Colorado, pregnancy is also protected classes. If you believe you have been discriminated against, don’t hesitate to contact an attorney. The experienced employment attorneys at Livelihood Law are happy to discuss your rights and options.
DISABILITY
The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act (CADA) prohibit discrimination against employees because of a real or perceived disability. These rules are designed to make sure that individuals with disabilities are treated fairly throughout the employment process.
NATIONAL ORIGIN
National origin discrimination involves treating applicants or employees unfavorably because they are from a particular country or part of the world. Employers cannot discriminate based on an individual’s birthplace, ancestry, culture or accent.
PREGNANCY/ BREASTFEEDING
Both federal and Colorado state laws prohibit pregnancy and nursing discrimination. Colorado law goes even further, mandating that employers provide reasonable accommodations and when employees return to work there are also protections in place for nursing parents.
RELIGION
Colorado employers cannot base employment decisions such as hiring, firing, and any other condition of employment on a worker’s religious beliefs, or lack thereof.
SEX
An employer cannot treat someone differently, or less favorably because of their sex. Title VII also prohibits employment decisions based on stereotypes about the abilities and traits of a particular gender.
Pursuing An Employee Discrimination Claim
Pursuing a discrimination claim requires going through the administrative process at either the EEOC or the CCRD. You are not required to have attorney representation for this process, but in order to reap the possible benefits, we recommend it in most situations.
This area of the law is still evolving, and these cases can be difficult to prove. Usually, there’s no one piece of evidence that indisputably proves discrimination. Building your case takes careful thought and digging into the exact circumstances. This is precisely why you need an experienced discrimination attorney that has direct experience in this area of the law.
Winning An Employee Discrimination Case
If you win your employee discrimination case, you can get back pay, front pay, compensation for lost benefits, emotional distress damages, exemplary (otherwise known as punitive) damages, and reimbursement of your attorney fees and court costs.
The stakes couldn’t be higher when pursuing a discrimination case. The law is complex and as mentioned above, cases can be difficult to prove. That’s why you need the very best employment attorneys on your side.
If you believe you have been discriminated against, don’t hesitate to contact an attorney. The experienced employment attorneys at Livelihood Law are happy to discuss your rights and options. Contact us here today.