Gender Discrimination - what does it mean?

Men and women are often faced with certain unexpected challenges in the workplace. These adversities could pertain to wages, work hours, or changes in job duties. Another challenge that can arise, which mostly impacts female employees but can affect men as well, is gender discrimination. Now, what exactly is workplace gender discrimination? The information presented in this article will help provide you with an answer to this question.

Workplace gender discrimination is treating individuals differently in employment situations based on their sex. Being rejected for employment, fired, or harmed in your job because of your gender are occurrences that constitute gender discrimination.  There are also certain job situations that can demonstrate this type of discrimination which can occur in the forms of hiring/firing, job classification, benefit awarding, and pay.

In a hiring/firing situation, an example of gender discrimination could be this: a woman applies for a job for which she has excellent qualifications but does not get the position because some of the older employees prefer dealing with men.  Another example could be a male employee being told that he will be laid off due to job cuts and reorganization; however, a female employee with the same position but less seniority gets to keep her job.  A third scenario demonstrating the hiring/firing situation could involve an outstanding female employee who sees a promotional opportunity that she decides to pursue, but the problem that she continues to face regarding promotions is that each time the she tries to apply, the positions are filled by less qualified men.

In a job classification situation, certain events may that deal with overtime and maternity leave which can be constituted as gender discrimination. One example could be evidenced based on the treatment of a company's long standing female employee after she returns from maternity leave. Said employee might not only good at her job, but may also have put in many hours of overtime. Upon returning from maternity leave, however, the employee tells her boss that she can no longer put in as many hours of overtime as she used to. As a result, the boss decides to demote the employee and lower her salary. Meanwhile, the female employee witnesses her male colleague with her same position receive an overtime cut back due to personal reasons without having either his position or pay be affected.  For more information about discrimination in the workplace, go here. This website can answer numerous questions, such as how a person can file a complaint against sex discrimination, who is covered by the law, and if you are a female, it can help you establish whether or not your employer has the right to make you wear a dress or feminine clothing.

What protections exist for individuals who are facing gender discrimination? Before this question can be answered, it should be noted that gender discrimination covers the areas of pregnancy discrimination and sexual harassment as well.  Under the law, these areas are considered forms of gender discrimination. There are two statues that cover gender discrimination. They are: Title VII, and the EPA, or the Equal Rights Protection Act.  Under Title VII, all private employers, state and local governments, educational institutions, and companies that employ 15 or more individuals are protected. This law also covers private and public employment agencies, labor organizations, and joint labor management committees that control apprenticeships.

Title VII protects current workers as well as job applicants.  If you are an employee and are fired, not promoted or hired, or not given needed accommodations due to your sex or gender, you are protected under this law. In terms of pay, under Title VII and the Equal Pay Act, it is illegal to discriminate based on sex or gender in payment of wages or benefits. The laws against discrimination cover all forms of payment, including salary, overtime pay, bonuses, stock options, profit sharing, holiday pay, reimbursement for travel, etc.

Under the EPA, or Equal Pay Act, employers are prohibited from paying unequal sums to men and woman who are performing jobs that require equal skill, effort, and care. Defined by the EPA, skill is be measured by factors such as experience, ability, education, and training required to do a job. Effort is defined as the amount of physical or mental ability needed to execute a job, and responsibility refers to the amount of accountability necessary to perform the job. When it comes to wages, under the EPA, an employer may not cut the pay of either sex to equalize the pay between men and  women. If you have additional questions about the EPA Act and would like to learn more information about it, go here. This website can tell you who is covered under the EPA Act, how to file a claim under it, and provide you with additional definitions for the phrase “Equal Pay."

Gender discrimination can affect women who are pregnant.  Pregnancy discrimination is discrimination with regard to pregnancy or childbirth-related conditions. It is illegal under Title VII to enforce this kind of discrimination. For a woman seeking to fight a pregnancy discrimination case, she can cite the P.D.A, or Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978. This act amends Title VII, which states that discrimination based on pregnancy is a form of sex discrimination. The law considers pregnancy to be a temporary disability and covers conditions such as morning sickness, bed rest, childbirth, recovery from childbirth, and doctor ordered births.  Additionally, under Title VII, an employee cannot treat a pregnant woman differently from any other sick, injured, or disabled employee. If you are a woman who is presently fighting a pregnancy discrimination case and needs to know what is constituted as unlawful treatment, go here. This website can provide you with information concerning the laws about the hiring of pregnant workers, maternity leave, and health insurance standards for pregnant employees.