Workplace discrimination continues to run rampant in California. Employees are frequently treated unfairly because of their age, race, gender, ethnicity, and sexual identity. As a result, these workers face tremendous consequences that can impact their careers and their personal lives for years, perhaps even decades, to come. That’s why in this post we want to look at the true impact of workplace discrimination, not to scare you, but to highlight the importance of taking legal action to bring this behavior to a stop and to protect your future.
What are the consequences of workplace discrimination?
If left unchecked, workplace discrimination can touch nearly every aspect of your life. This includes the following:
- Stunting your career: You’ve worked hard to get where you’re at. But workplace discrimination can quickly cut you off from the advancement you deserve. Instead, you might be demoted, reassigned to a less favorable position, passed over for promotion, or even terminated from your job. This can put a mar on your resume, too, making it difficult to secure positions you want and deserve at other companies.
- Losing pay: Workplace discrimination often has a direct financial impact on victims. This loss of pay can cause strain in your personal life, making it difficult to pay your rent or mortgage, pay your monthly car payment, and even keep food on the table. This could lead to repossession and foreclosure, and you may end up facing additional legal action if your lost pay renders you unable to meet a child support obligation.
- Harming your reputation: Even when you’re subjected to workplace discrimination, your employer is going to try to mask it as legitimate action related to your work performance. If you don’t contradict your employer, then your co-workers and those at future employers may see you as an underperformer when that really isn’t the case.
- Damaging your mental health: Discrimination is difficult to deal with in any context. You might find yourself dealing with anger and frustration, as well as fear of the future. Throw in the financial and career concerns, and you can feel yourself overwhelmed with the pressures of your day-to-day life. This can lead to depression and social isolation, when can reshape how you live your life
There may be other ways that workplace discrimination touches your life. Regardless of the specific effects, though, there’s no doubt that it can and will cause you harm. That’s why you need to act now to protect your interests.
Building your workplace discrimination claim
If you’ve been discriminated against in the workplace, then you’ll likely have to take legal action to stop it. To position yourself for success on your claim, start gathering evidence now. Collect any written communication you’ve had with your employer as well as your recent performance appraisals. Talk to co-workers to see if they’ve witnessed any discriminatory acts taken against you or if they’ve observed other discriminatory behavior in the workplace. Keep track of your damages, including writing in a daily journal about how the discrimination has made you feel and affected your ability to live a normal life.
By taking these steps, you might put yourself on the path to building a winning workplace discrimination case. This, in turn, could give you the sense of accountability and closure that you want, while providing you with the financial resources and clean employment record that you need. If you have questions about how best to approach your case, then please continue to read our website and search for other resources that may be beneficial to you.