RACIAL DISCRIMINATION IN THE WORKPLACE
While there is no doubt minority groups have made great strides within the modern workplace, there is a solid amount of discrimination that still exists among certain employers.
In many cases, this becomes evident during the application process. Whereas in years past most people had to apply for jobs in person, today’s workplace relies primarily on applications and resumes submitted online. In recent studies, a disturbing trend has emerged regarding how employers reply to applications and resumes based on the person’s name. In many cases, applicants with names that clearly distinguished them as minorities were called for interviews far less frequently than applicants whose names did not.
If you believe you have been discriminated against when applying for a job, contact an employment attorney in Los Angeles at Mann Elias.
Racial Names at Applying for a Job
In a recent experiment, researchers sent out resumes featuring distinctive racial names to various employers. In many instances, even if the resumes and applications featuring minority names included impressive credentials, callbacks for interviews were as much as 50 percent less than those featuring Caucasian names. Should you have experienced a similar situation during your job application process and believe discrimination may have played a factor, take your concerns to a Los Angeles racial discrimination law firm like Mann & Elias.
Old Ideas Ingrained within Employers
Despite the many advances made by minorities in terms of education and job skills, many employers still discriminate based on old ideas ingrained within themselves and their companies. Unfortunately for many applicants during the job search process and when involved in job interviews, it can be difficult to prove their protected rights have been violated.
Should you try to do this on your own, you will almost always fail. But by working with Los Angeles racial profiling lawyers from Mann & Elias, we can examine past hiring practices to establish a clear pattern of discrimination. In doing so, your suspicions of racial discrimination can be confirmed.
The 50 Percent Gap
In a study conducted regarding racial names, researchers found the callback gap was as wide as 50 percent, likening to the equivalence of an additional eight years of job experience contained within applications and resumes.
Though employers may use many different tactics to hide their discriminatory hiring practices, hiring a workplace racial discrimination lawyer can make all the difference in these cases. With legal help, you might be able to prove the hiring manager exhibited a pattern of discrimination.
For instance, they may have called back a particular demographic for interviews and offered specific applicants the job. Though these cases can be complex, they are certainly winnable. If you need a lawyer after experiencing racism at work, do not hesitate to contact our employment law firm.
Invisible Barriers
During the application and interview process, many minority applicants may be facing several invisible barriers to getting hired. In many companies, managers are required by company policy or even state and federal law to interview a certain number of minority candidates for various positions, even if they have no intention whatsoever of offering them a job.
Employers may phrase questions differently to minority and Caucasian applicants in other situations, ensuring their answers are quite different. By placing these barriers in front of various applicants, employers can appear as if they simply had better candidates available for the open position. If you believe an employer denied you a fair chance to compete for a job, consult with a Los Angeles workplace attorney at Mann & Elias.
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
When you believe you may have been the victim of discriminatory hiring practices, one of your first steps should be to contact the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission about your concerns.
Even if you ultimately pursue litigation against an employer for racial discrimination, you will need to file a formal complaint with the EEOC before doing so. Once a complaint is filed, the agency will investigate if warranted and rule for you, against you, or state if not enough evidence exists to reach a decision of guilt or innocence against the employer.
Yet regardless of the EEOC decision, you will still have a right to pursue litigation. Discuss your case in-depth with a Los Angeles racial discrimination lawyer to get more information about filing an EEOC complaint and a subsequent lawsuit.
Evidence is Crucial
In these situations where racial discrimination may have occurred, having substantial amounts of evidence is crucial. Since it is likely an employer has been practicing discrimination for quite some time, they have probably gotten very good at hiding whatever tricks and tactics they use.
Thus, if you have been turned down for a job you know you were well-qualified and had better credentials than other candidates, you will need to work with racial profiling attorneys who Angelenos trust at Mann & Elias.
Due to the complexities involved in these cases, attorneys will need to paint you in the best possible light while at the same time demonstrating other applicants were less qualified for the job. If you fail to follow your attorney’s advice along the way, you will come off as a disgruntled individual who could not get hired for a job.
Though an employer will state your name had nothing to do with whether or not you were called for an interview, don’t always assume this is the case. Sooner or later, even the most discriminatory employers will make mistakes. Rather than sit back and let yourself be denied the career opportunities for which you have worked so hard to get, schedule a consultation today!