Top 10 Workplace Discrimination Claims

Posted January 31, 2022

 

Discrimination lawsuits can be time-consuming and expensive. Even without legal action, claims of discrimination can result in a loss of employee morale and community reputation. In fact, there were more than 70,804 workplace discrimination charges resolved by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in 2020.

Top 10 reasons for workplace discrimination claims:

1. Retaliation—37,632 (55.8% of all charges filed)
2. Disability—24,324 (36.1%)
3. Race—22,064 (32.7%)
4. Sex—21,398 (31.7%)
5. Age—14,183 (21.0%)
6. National origin—6,377 (9.5%)
7. Color—3,562 (5.3%)
8. Religion—2,404 (3.6%)
9. Equal Pay Act—980 (1.5%)
10. Genetic information—440 (0.7%)

These percentages add up to more than 100% because some EEOC lawsuits alleged multiple reasons for discrimination.

Protect your business from retaliation and other discrimination claims with these five steps:

1. Audit your business practices.
   Review your business practices to uncover any potentially problematic situations.
2. Create a clear anti-retaliation policy.
   Clearly detail what can and can’t be done when disciplining or terminating employees.
3. Train management and employees.
   Educate everyone on harassment and other discrimination policies.
4. Implement an internal complaint procedure.
   Make sure employees can easily use your internal process to file complaints.
5. Uphold a standard of workplace civility.
   Politeness in the workplace can greatly reduce retaliatory behavior.

Workplace discrimination comes in many forms. It’s important to proactively put in place steps that ensure everyone has a safe and respectful workplace environment. Speak with us today for more workplace guidance.