What is Racial Discrimination At Work

Racial discrimination at work can take place in different forms. In fact, you may not even be aware of it as it could be taking place in an overt manner. It could be as simple as your employer not promoting you for years because of your race. It could be in the form of an interview question. This guide will help you identify racial discrimination at work. You will also learn what action to take against it.

Identification

What makes racial discrimination at work complicated is that it may be taking place undetected and you don’t know it. In fact, you cannot be sure where your boss promoted someone over you or is always trying to downplay on your achievements. Yet it is possible to detect certain discriminatory signs at times.

A potential employer is not allowed by law to ask you about your race during an interview. If someone does ask this question and does not hire you, you could infer that your race was a factor in declining your candidacy.

Some of the other examples of racial discrimination at work are as follows:

Taking disciplinary action against an employee without any solid grounds but because of his/her race.
Removing an employee from service without any reason but because of his/her race.
Paying a worker less than others or not offering certain benefits because of his/her race.
Not providing promotions, benefits and other opportunities to an employee due to his/her race.
Identifying or categorizing employees or interviewees based on their race.

Your Options Against Workplace Racial Discrimination

If you feel that there is racial discrimination at work against you, you should file a formal complaint. It is recommended to file the report not only to your department head but also to your human resources manager. Make sure the complaint is in writing.

It will be best if you maintain a written record of all the moments when you were discriminated. If you have such a record, you could be more precise with the date, time, location and the exact details of the incidence. The info can benefit you a lot when you decide to use your employer. Keep in mind that it is your employer who is liable for any instance of racial discrimination at work. This is the case even if you were discriminated by a colleague.

Protection Against Retaliation

When filing a complaint against any type of discrimination in your office, you don’t have to worry about a retaliation by your employer. The law protects you against any such action. This is often the reason why most people don’t come forward in the case of racial discrimination at work. Your boss or employer cannot fire you if you report them or take legal action against them. If there is any such move from them, you could use them for retaliatory action too. In other words, the law makes you immune against retaliatory action.

So if you are being discriminated at work due to your race, you can file a formal complaint or even pursue a legal course against it.