Employment Discrimination - Prohibited Actions

Maryland, Northern Virginia, and Washington D.C. Employment Discrimination Attorneys

Our employment discrimination attorneys help employees and employers understand and resolve employment discrimination claims and disputes, and deal with discriminatory employment practices in the state of Maryland, Washington DC and Northern Virginia.

Action Must be Tied to Employee’s Status

Federal, state and local laws generally define "discrimination" in the same way. Again, keep in mind that just having a "difficult" boss or employer does not make a claim. The law only prohibits the action(s) of the employer when there is a connection between the employer's behavior or action and the employee's race, color, sex, religion, national origin, disability, age, sexual orientation or some other protected category or activity.

Example: Stuart and Bob apply for the job of policeman in Mayberry. Stuart is black, while Bob is white. Stuart has 5 more years of law enforcement experience than Bob and was a police officer in his hometown previous to moving to Mayberry. Bob gets the job. This may be a case of discrimination tied to race.

Employer Actions Which Are Commonly the Focus of Discrimination Claims

It is illegal to discriminate in any aspect of employment, including:

• Hiring, firing, promotions and assignments
• compensation, pay, bonuses or awards, fringe benefits, retirement plans, and disability leave
• transfer, layoff or recalls
• job advertisements and recruitment
• testing
• use of company facilities
• training opportunities and apprenticeship programs
• conditions of employments

Other Discriminatory Employment Practices

• harassment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (see our sexual harassment page), national origin, disability (see our disability discrimination page), or age (see our age discrimination page)
• retaliation against an individual for filing a charge of discrimination, participating in an investigation as a witness against the employer, or advocating against or opposing discriminatory practices.
• employment decisions that are simply based on stereotypes or assumptions about an employee or his/her abilities due to his/her sex, race, age (age discrimination), religion (religious discrimination), ethnic group, or disability (disability discrimination)
• denying employment opportunities to a person because of marriage to or association with an individual of a particular race, religion, national origin, or an individual with a disability. Title VII also prohibits discrimination because of participation in schools or places of worship associated with a particular racial, ethnic, or religious group.

If you need the help of an experienced employment discrimination lawyer, personal injury or insurance attorney in Maryland, Washington DC or Northern Virginia, please contact the Law Offices of Stuart L. Plotnick, LLC in Rockville, Maryland