Broward County Employment Law Blog

4 ways to recognize workplace discrimination

On behalf of The Amlong Firm on Monday, March 25, 2019.

In 1964, the Civil Rights Act was enacted to protect Americans from various forms of discrimination. At first, it outlawed discrimination based on gender, race and ethnicity. Later, additional laws were passed to protect individuals from other forms of discrimination including age and disability. Unfortunately, even with these protections in place, workplace discrimination still occurs in Fort Lauderdale as well as other cities in Florida and across the United States.

In many instances, discrimination can be subtle and almost undetectable. If fact, employees often do not realize that they are being subjected to unfair practices. This is why it is important to know how to recognize the signs of workplace discrimination.

Was my denied promotion due to gender discrimination?

On behalf of The Amlong Firm on Thursday, March 21, 2019.

Being denied a promotion you think you deserve and for which you believe you are qualified can be a very disheartening feeling. In addition, seeing a coworker who is less experienced receive the promotion can be disconcerting. You may question whether you have been discriminated against, especially if the person who received the promotion was not the same gender as you.

Gender discrimination in the workplace counts as any type of negative behavior toward a worker that is based on their gender identity. This could be the act of paying two workers of the opposite sex unequally for equal work, or it could be the denial of employment or a promotion because of the applicant's gender. If you believe that you are a victim of gender discrimination because of a promotion denial, it is important that you understand how the law applies in Florida.

Restructuring can be a thinly veiled form of age discrimination

On behalf of The Amlong Firm on Tuesday, March 5, 2019.

Times change, and so do the demands a company faces. Whether internal practices have shifted or a company has merged with another business, restructuring is a way to address inefficiency and problems within a company. It can help a company assess its current practices and find better ways to do business.

Done properly, restructuring benefits everyone, from the staff to the employer. Unfortunately, many businesses use restructuring as a means of getting rid of older employees and bringing in new staff. This may be nothing more than a thinly veiled form of age discrimination.

Do your employer’s policies discriminate against you?

On behalf of The Amlong Firm on Monday, February 4, 2019.

The last several years have seen sweeping changes to the culture surrounding harassment in the workplace. In nearly every area of business, leadership sees the writing on the wall and understands that workplaces that turn a blind eye to harassment may find themselves facing costly lawsuits.

Slowly but surely, state and federal laws are catching up and offering protections against harassment and discrimination that many businesses have allowed. Unfortunately, some states push back against these kinds of regulations, and some businesses drag their feet with compliance and updates to their company policies.

What you should know about race and color discrimination

On behalf of The Amlong Firm on Friday, January 4, 2019.

It's inconceivable to imagine that any employer would pass up a highly skilled employee, who can contribute better quality work than his or her competing job applicants, just because of superficial characteristics like race and skin color. The thing is, it happens every day in Florida and it usually goes completely unnoticed.

After all, how is a job applicant going to know that he didn't get the job because he was black, Hispanic or Asian? How is a worker going to know that her boss passed her up for a promotion because her skin is a darker shade of color than her coworker?

Common examples of sexual harassment in the workplace

On behalf of The Amlong Firm on Wednesday, December 5, 2018.

Forget about your job title, industry and company culture for a second. Regardless of who you are, there's always a chance you could be the victim of sexual harassment in the workplace.

This doesn't mean you should look over your shoulder all day, every day. However, if you have reason to believe you're a victim, it's imperative to take the right steps.

Why hiring "digital natives" may be age discrimination

On behalf of The Amlong Firm on Monday, November 5, 2018.

Age discrimination typically isn't all that overt. Companies do not put out ads saying they won't hire anyone over 45 or that only people in their 20s should apply. They know well that age discrimination is illegal.

That does not mean they don't do it. They try to hide it. They try to cover it up with something else and make it appear not to be age-based at all.

Examples of gender discrimination at work

On behalf of The Amlong Firm on Thursday, October 4, 2018.

Even though you should never have to worry about gender discrimination at your place of employment, you realize this could happen at some point. If it does, you shouldn't sit back and assume it's okay. Instead, it's important to take action to protect your legal rights.

Many employees ignore gender discrimination because they don't want to "rock the boat." They assume it's better to have a job than to say something that could result in their termination (despite the fact that this is against the law).

What does the Age Discrimination in Employment Act protect?

On behalf of The Amlong Firm on Friday, September 7, 2018.

For the last several decades, Americans have enjoyed strong protections against age discrimination, codified largely in the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. Prior to the passage of the ADEA, workers in many fields found themselves pushed out simply because younger workers rose up to fill their positions. With the protections afforded in the ADEA, workers have tools to protect their rights as they age in the workforce and potentially experience discrimination because of it.

If you have concerns about your employer's attitude toward your age, it is wise to understand the boundaries of what an employer can and cannot do in regard to your age. A strong grasp of the law and high-quality legal resources may offer the guidance you need at a crucial moment in your career.

Was pretextual discrimination the reason for your firing?

On behalf of The Amlong Firm on Friday, August 10, 2018.

Fort Lauderdale workers likely know that age discrimination is illegal. But what few may realize is that less-than-honest employers can use pretexts to terminate older workers in an attempt to circumvent state and federal discrimination laws.

Here's how it might go down in a workplace setting: