Estate Planning

Discrimination, Retaliation, & Harassment Law in Florida

By David M. Goldman

In Florida, general ?harassment? is not illegal. Your boss can be a jerk. Harassment because of the employee?s race, sex, age, religion, national origin, color (essentially, shade), pregnancy, disability, marital status, or, sometimes, sexual orientation, is illegal. It must be so severe or pervasive that it alters the conditions of employment. Single or occasional comments and actions are usually not considered harassment. If the employer has a harassment/ discrimination policy, the employee must report it and give the employer the opportunity to correct it before the employer is liable, unless the harassment results in a firing, demotion, or other ?tangible? action.

You should look to see if you are in some protected category. If your supervisor made racist or sexist jokes, said they thought you were too old or your disability made you unable to do the job, required you to work on religious holidays, or made other comments that would indicate a bias, you may have direct evidence of discrimination.

If you don?t have direct evidence of discrimination, you may be able demonstrate you were treated differently than those of a different race, sex, religion, national origin, age, or other protected status under the same circumstances. Try to think of people who are of a different race/age/sex, etc. and were treated differently from you. Find out if there are people who have also been the victims of similar discrimination.

If you were retaliated against after you took some protected action, you may be able to sue for retaliation. Think about whether you recently made a worker?s compensation claim, performed jury duty, served in the military, took family/medical leave, served as a witness in a lawsuit, provided testimony or evidence to EEOC, refused to participate in illegal activity, reported illegal activity, or engaged in protected free speech.

If you believe something illegal has happened, contact a Florida Employment Lawyer to discuss the possibility that you may have a case.

Full post as published by Florida Estate Planning Lawyer Blog on January 06, 2008 (boomark / email).