Looking for some feed back on discrimination in the work place.

[Exultant Democracy]

Right now I am in a situation where I can prove and point out many instances where I have been discriminated against and situations where preferential treatment to others has had a direct negative impact on my perceived job performance. I can also prove that these events lead to my recent demotion (this afternoon.)

Now here is the question, is the fact that I am a person of color who was discriminated against enough for me to win a lawsuit, or do I have to prove that the discrimination was racially motivated? (if so what would be the burden of proof.)

I ask this because the 3 people who more or less f**ked me (one is my boss and the other two do/did the same job as me) have all been best friends since they were 18. What is to say that when my boss takes my top salesperson without consulting me and gives him to his buddy that it is racism and not just cronyism.

I do have two instances where my boss said some racist things but it would be my word against his and since he used euphemisms he might be able to wiggle out of it.

Either way I am rather pissed off right now, but I really want to get and ideal of where this situation would stand legally.

Oh and one more jacked up thing, my job performance is almost totally objective. The company rates on a performance scale with 100% being seen as perfect, most people who keep there jobs stay in the high to mid 90's. Since I have taken my position my lowest performance was a 105% and my most recent was 112.25%. How the hell do you demote a person that is doing their job so well that they are more then perfect?

[Exultant Democracy]

1. i'm gonna give this one single kick

to see if I can get any feedback. In fact sympathy in very very modest proportions will also be acceptable.

[Darth_Kitten]

2. I feel for you.

:hug:

I'll leave it to others to suggest what can be done.

Favourtism almost always excludes the top performing people of any organization, IMHO. It's sickening and sad. :(

[Ladyhawk]

9. I've seen it, too. Why does the scum always rise to the top????

When I was working, I was the best employee and salesperson on the job and others were promoted and paid more. It was so disheartening. :( :( :( And I can't blame it on anything except favoritism / cronyism.

Mix cronyism with racial issues and you have a real Gordian Knot. A person of color in that kind of situation has to work six times as hard, I imagine. I'm sorry.

:hug:

[philosophie_en_rose]

10. Because most workplace cliques are support groups for the incompetent.

In the absence of work performance, they need each other to create the fiction that they do any work.

[yewberry]

3. I wish I knew.

I think you're right to draw a distinction between favoritism & cronyism vs racism in your situation, if only because you have objective proof of the former and not the latter.

Good, good thing that your performance rating is so high--that makes a demotion look very bad.

Is this a larger corporate-type structure that has an HR department that could handle a complaint, or is it a smaller company?

Oh, and I'd be "rather" pissed off, too. Sorry you're facing this.

[zinndependence]

4. I'd file a formal complaint with the EEOC

I went through something similar....except my complaint was gender discrimination. I filed a complaint with my state's civil rights division of the department of workforce development. My complaint was automatically forwarded to the EEOC as well. I filed in June. The school district where I worked (I was selected for layoff - the reason given by my school district was declining enrollment/budget cuts...I argued retaliation for a gender discrimination complaint I made against my principal....there is a lot more to it therefore, I will not bore you with the details)Anyway, the district had I think 30 days to respond. I was then asked four additional questions on which I needed to elaborate. I'm still waiting for a response.

My advice is: The more evidence you have the better. In the beginning, I felt like I had a lot. I had compiled emails, notes, etc. dating back four years. I had names, dates, situations. Now, I feel like I needed more detail.

It is best if you can provide the names of individuals who are familiar with what has happened to you. Even if they did not witness the discrimination first-hand, did you discuss what had happened with a colleague shortly after it happened? Have you ever reported harassment/discrimination to anyone? (I had, on numerous occasions, and I still don't know if I will prevail.)

Detail is essential.

Also, I didn't realize how much I would have to "investigate" this on my own. Of course it has been difficult considering everyone is covering everyone else's asses. Even my union is forbidding my union rep from turning over her notes (which includes information about not only my allegations of gender discrimination, but my concerns over a colleague and a student's sexual relationship. This colleague was a good friend of the principal...considering the environment of the high school, which I considered hostile, especially toward women, and my relationship with the principal, which I felt was discriminatory, I did not feel comfortable reporting the alleged sexual relationship to the principal. Now, two years later, there is a police investigation.)

You may want to check your state government's website, from there you will learn where/how to file a formal complaint.

Good luck.

[crispini]

5. First, document everything you can.

Write it all down, print out emails, and build a dossier.

Second, do you know any good lawyers? I'd look around. Here's a hint -- spend a little time hanging out with your local dems and you'll find lots and lots of lawyers. Get a good lawyer on your side and they'll get you started on what you need to do.

[Exultant Democracy]

6. Thanks guys

some good leads here. I'm pretty pissed right now but I think I am going to hold off for at least a month or so and then head to a lawyer with a cool head and let him decide if it is worth pursuing.
Thanks again,
LC

[philosophie_en_rose]

8. Report Soon; because - right or wrong - you'll be protected then.

It's a separate violation to retaliate against a worker for filing a complaint with an oversight agency, especially the EEOC. Even if you're dead wrong {but believed you were right}, you're protected from retaliation.

Therefore, I'd consult someone at the EEOC for advice. Even if you don't file a complaint, you could probably get more info. If you do, then you'll be protected from your employer's actions.







*Disclaimer: this post is based on my personal opinion. It's not legal advice. Seek an attorney or EEOC representative for recommendations specific to your situation.

[Exultant Democracy]

13. You are right

but while I know that these guys are racist I also know that there is the slightest chance that if I was a white guy this could have happened to. Then again if I was a white guys and I had sucked up, been lazy and nonthreatening and become part of their little club (instead of putting in 70 hour a week and making them look like schlep rocks by blowing up every location that I took over for them and making them look like shit.) There is the slightest chance that I would have been able to get by. At the same time I think that there is a slight chance that a white male might have been screwed over the same way I was if he acted just like I have. The longer I think about it the more unsure I am if it is worth pursuing but I promise that I will talk to a lawyer.

In the end if it is worth starting a war I will, and while I know that the evil of a good man doing nothing is in many ways worse then the evil done by the evil and the ignorant. Since I was the one who was hurt I feel that is is fair for me to consider my interests first. If an expert believes that I can win then I will go after them, but if it is a losing battle I would rather go to my new position, and hopefully get promoted again, because I can do more good for myself and others by not fighting a battle I am bound to loose.

Thanks Again,
LC

[philosophie_en_rose]

20. If race is any consideration in the treatment of you,

it doesn't matter that would treat someone in another circumstance in a similar manner. As long as the reason with you is race - even if it's not the entire reason - you should protect yourself.

These situations almost never get better.

[REP]

7. File with Your State First

Your state will likely have stricter labor laws; file a complaint with them first. Look for something like the Department of Fair Employment and Housing.

You will need to document a pattern of actions taken against you that weren't taken against someone in the same position and document why you think you were singled out based on your race/age/gender/disability/veteran status/etc.

[REP]

16. I Won My Case, BTW

[Exultant Democracy]

19. congratulations.

I have a lot to think about, did you go to court or was it settled. Any information you have on your experience would be appreciated.

[BikeWriter]

11. I was a Chief Union Steward for twenty-five years. This sounds...

like a case I'd refer to the EEOC. It may be worth a law suit.

[Digit]

12. First of all, I am not an attorney....

I recently went through a situation where I was wronged for an altogether different reason and an attorney suggested I record the conversation (it was over a telephone). I did not go to court, but I let them know I had recorded the conversation after the fact and it saved me about $2,000 in the final analysis.
I was advised that if at least one of the parties knew the conversation was being recorded, it was allowable.
I wonder if gathering a recording would be something that could prove useful to you.

[Exultant Democracy]

14. They know me to well and are way to smart to let me get them

From time to time the nature of my job requires me to be rather ruthless. These guys, after working with me for the last 6 months, know for a fact that all I need is one opening to take someone out.

My demotion won't take effect for two weeks and at that point I will be on the east coast instead of the mid-west and working in a department which is completely unconnected to them. Once I'm there I will have no contact with them. For the next two weeks, since they already won, all they have to do is watch their backs and be very careful not to slip up.

One of the things that pisses me off the most is that I have seen this coming for almost two months and I even set up an exit strategy that would have allowed me to walk out clean. I just assumed that since I was making my boss so much money that he would wait another three months, the fact is he screwed himself out of almost as much money as he screwed me out of unless his people really step up their game.

[BikeWriter]

15. I like what you say in Post 13 about not being certain...

if they'd have done this to you no matter your race. That shows you're not wanting to deal the race card if it's not warranted. You know them far better than we do, but you have impressed the hell out of me. If there's any justice in this world you'll be their boss in a few years. :)

[Exultant Democracy]

17. Thank you. The fact is I am really pissed

but I am not about to lose my head over this. I hate using the race card, but I know I was screwed and the temptation to get them back is pretty strong.

[BikeWriter]

18. You could always invest an hour in talking to the EEOC...

See if they could give you an opinion of this from their experienced vantage point. In my opinion you are being entirely reasonable. If you were on a Union job and I were your steward, I'd be on those assholes like white on rice!

[philosophie_en_rose]

21. Yes, let's just ignore racism.

That will solve everything. :eyes: Because what's wrong in the world is people focusing on race. Can't be the racists.