How to Prove That You Were Discriminated Against at Work

Discrimination in the workplace is a very insidious thing. You know in your heart that it is happening but sometimes it is so subtle that it would be difficult to convince a court that it is happening. Not only that, but you would much rather not have to escalate the situation and simply be able to do your job in peace and be compensated fairly for it.

There are so many different types of discrimination and many different people that find themselves discriminated against. It could be because of gender, sexual orientation, race or even age that sets somebody at work against you. Whatever the type, it is illegal.

If you feel that you have been discriminated against then you need to know how to prove it. In this article, we will go over some of the basics so you have a good chance at proving your case.

The Evidence you Need

Before you go looking for a discrimination lawyer, you need to have something to give them so they can build a case against your employer. You can’t just go to them and say that you feel you’ve been discriminated against without anything to back it up.

In other words, you have to have some evidence.

There are two types of evidence that can be used in court. Direct and circumstantial. The most effective evidence to show discrimination occured is direct as there is an actual line that can be drawn between the intent and the discrimination.

This type of evidence could be an email in which a superior admits that the promotion was given to somebody younger because your age doesn’t represent the youthful vision of the company, as an example. Or, you could have a witness that can testify that somebody admitted that they fired somebody for their sexual orientation or race.

Both of these examples are very rare. Not many people will admit to doing such a thing as obviously as this.

Circumstantial is the most common evidence and can work very well in proving intent in a discrimination case. It requires collecting a lot of different forms of evidence that can support your case.

Are you a Protected Class?

If you are in a protected class of employees then this is something that is going to be essential in proving a case. There would need to be a reason for somebody to want to discriminate against you.

If you are as qualified as the person who got a promotion over you and they are not a member of any protected class, then this could be a sign that there was discrimination. Especially if the person has been with the company for less time and doesn’t have as much experience or qualifications.

This on its face doesn’t equal discrimination. If there had been incidents before that event, then these would need to be presented in addition. For instance, you should be recording any incidents that could be interpreted as discriminatory. Were you excluded from a company event because of a disability? Were derogatory comments made about your sexual orientation? Make sure to document any of these incidents to present when you bring a case to a lawyer.