Working people who suddenly feel like they have been put under a microscope after reporting discrimination on the job may start to wonder if they ever should have spoken up. That is exactly why this kind of retaliation at work is illegal.
Workers in Washington and across the country have strong protections against discrimination and harassment, including by co-workers, bosses, and others. On the flip side, employers are required to take steps to prevent bias and harassment and to respond appropriately to complaints about such behavior.
Here is what employers cannot do: retaliate against workers who report discrimination. Unlawful retaliation often takes the form of firing, demotions, and other punitive measures. But it can also rear its ugly head in far subtler ways, like when your manager starts documenting everything you do shortly after you file a complaint.
This is a problem. When a manager suddenly begins documenting your every move, it may be a sign that he or she is planning to write you up, put you on a performance plan, or even seek to have you fired. It is vital to understand your rights and options.
At Justice Law Corporation, our Washington discrimination lawyers help people who are punished for speaking up at work fight back. We are experienced attorneys with a long track record of successful results for the people and families that we represent. We force employers to focus on eradicating discrimination and harassment in their workplaces, rather than going after those who complain about it.
New scrutiny from a manager after you report bias is often meant to be a nudge to drop it and get back to work. This kind of retaliation, however, is what allows workplaces to become toxic in the first place and remain that way for long periods. That is why it is important for employees to fight back, whether it is individually or through collective action.
Knowing something feels like retaliation is not enough. To win a retaliation claim, you have to be able to prove it. Here is how you do it.
What is Employment Discrimination?
The Washington Law Against Discrimination and a variety of other state and federal laws generally protect workers from workplace bias. That includes discrimination and harassment based on the following characteristics:
- Sex
- Race
- Age (over 40)
- National origin
- Religion
- Sexual orientation
- Gender identity
- Disability
Discrimination can occur in various areas, including hiring, firing, pay, promotions, job assignments, and training opportunities.
It routinely arises as harassment, or unwelcome, offensive conduct that creates a hostile work environment. To be actionable, the harassing behavior must be severe or pervasive enough to create a hostile work environment. That means the harassment interferes with a person’s ability to do their job.
Retaliation is Illegal
The laws also ban employers from retaliating against workers who report discrimination or otherwise engage in protected activity. This is crucial: It empowers workers to report discrimination and harassment without fear of being fired, demoted, or otherwise punished.
Sometimes the retaliation is straightforward, such as when an employee is demoted right after complaining about harassment. It often is much more subtle, and can come through:
- Being left out of important meetings
- Receiving unrealistic workloads
- Losing key responsibilities
- Being reassigned to less favorable shifts
These actions, while seemingly less significant, are meant to make workers less comfortable. That is because the employer wants to punish the worker or eventually force the person off the job.
How to Prove Retaliation
State and federal laws protect workers from retaliation for engaging in a wide range of protected activities, including reporting discrimination.
Importantly, you do not have to prove that the underlying discrimination actually occurred. If you had a reasonable, good-faith belief that something unlawful was happening, you are still protected from retaliation.
To prove retaliation, you have to show that:
- You engaged in a protected activity
- Your employer took an adverse employment action
- There is a causal connection between the protected activity and the adverse action
In a situation where a boss starts documenting everything you do after you report discrimination, the key is proving that this constitutes an adverse action and that it is linked to your reporting.
Courts tend to broadly interpret adverse action to include actions that can materially impact your job or career. New scrutiny that leads to notes on your personnel file, internal communications about your role, or written discipline or warnings is likely to be considered sufficient to support a retaliation claim.
Linking the scrutiny with the discrimination report can be difficult. Employers rarely admit retaliation outright. Instead, they often try to justify adverse action with business or performance factors they claim are unrelated to any protected activity. Workers frequently must use circumstantial evidence, or facts that indirectly lead to the conclusion that the adverse action is the result of the protected activity.
Close timing and sudden shifts by employers can be used to prove retaliation. If your employer rarely documented your performance on the job and suddenly starts tracking your every move in the days after you report discrimination, that certainly suggests that the two are related. Especially if similarly situated coworkers are not all of a sudden getting the same heat.
Our Washington Discrimination Lawyers Can Help
If you believe that you are being discriminated against on the job, whether it is by being passed over for a position, underpaid in your role, or by being subjected to harassment, you do not need to go it alone. A Washington discrimination lawyer at Justice Law Corporation can help you evaluate your claim and understand your rights and options.
Our office is conveniently located in Seattle. Contact us at (360) 207-0000 to schedule a free consultation with a Washington discrimination lawyer.
