South Florida Personal Injury Blog

In January of this year, Fort Lauderdale injury attorney Alitowski says the United States Congress enacted the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which amended the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The changes expand workplace protections for people whose employers have discriminated against them without their knowledge, according to Broward personal injury lawyer Alitowski.

President Obama signed the bill into law on January 29, 2009, shortly after he was inaugurated as President. The law was passed in response to the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. in 2007, a controversial decision by the high court, notes Broward accident lawyer Alitowski. In that case the plaintiff, Lilly Ledbetter, began working at the Goodyear Tire Co. in Alabama. In 1998 Ledbetter sued Goodyear claiming that she had been discriminated against on the basis of her sex. At the time she filed suit, Ledbetter, who had started at the same pay as several of her male colleagues, was being paid $3,700 per month compared her male employees who earned between $4,200 and $5,200 per month. She alleged – and proved – that the disparity was because she is a woman.

On appeal, the Supreme Court did not address the issue of whether Ledbetter had suffered discrimination, but instead looked at the issue of whether the Civil Rights Act allowed Ledbetter to sue Goodyear or whether the suit was barred by the statute of limitations. The relevant provision in the law stated that a plaintiff had to file a suit against her employee within 180 days after the alleged unlawful practice occurred. Goodyear argued, and several members of the Supreme Court agreed, that the 180 day clock should have started from the point where the Goodyear Company started making discriminatory decisions about pay increases. Since Ledbetter did not allege that the discrimination occurred in 1998, her suit was untimely and her case was dismissed. In a dissent she read from the bench, Justice Ginsburg argued that the Supreme Court should have held that “knowingly carrying past discrimination forward” should continue the clock for statute of limitations purposes because pay discrimination often occurs in small increments over large periods of time. The Lilly Ledbetter act was a direct response to the Supreme Court’s majority decision. The law adopted Justice Ginsburg’s position by amending the Civil Rights Act to reset the 180 day statute of limitations period with each discriminatory paycheck. The law was brought up several times during the 2008 presidential campaign. Generally, opponents of the bill argued that its enactment would harm business interests.

“If you weren’t so aggressive, maybe you would get a promotion.”

“A girl like you isn’t really right for this job.”

“You’re too pretty to be doing this kind of work. We’d rather keep you where you are now.”

“Come on, why won’t you go out with me?”

“I wouldn’t mind seeing you wear something sexier around here.”

“I heard you get around with all the guys here. Why don’t you come over to my place tonight?”

If you have ever heard anything like this at work, you might have been the victim of sexual harassment, according to Fort Lauderdale personal injury attorney Andrew Alitowski. Sexual harassment occurs in the workplace when workers, most often female employees, are harassed by other employees. The harassment is unwelcome and is either explicitly sexual or pertains to the sex of the person who is being harassed.

Broward injury lawyer Alitowski says sexual harassment can take many forms. If a supervisor or a co-worker will not stop pestering you to go out on a date with him, even though you have expressed your lack of interest in him, he may be sexually harassing you. If co-workers make unwelcome remarks or jokes about your body or your clothing, like the way your skirt fits, they have probably crossed the line that separates workplace fun and sexual harassment. When a person you work with spreads rumors around the office about your supposed sexual exploits, or even claims you have engaged in sexual activities with him, your reputation is compromised. Rude gestures, inappropriate jokes and comments, and even leaving notes or sending racy emails are all inappropriate for the workplace, says Fort Lauderdale personal injury lawyer Alitowski. Worst of all, sexual harassment occurs when a co-worker or employer actually touches you in a sexual or inappropriate manner.

Likewise, if you believe you are being passed over for promotions or are receiving a lower rate of pay due to your sex, it is likely a case of sexual harassment. Sometimes this is done subtly: an employer or supervisor remarks that you are too “aggressive,” although he seems to value the same assertiveness in men who work at the company. Or he makes a remark about the way you dress, perhaps suggesting that dressing in a more alluring fashion could be tied to increased earnings or job security.

If you have experienced sexual harassment at your workplace, Broward personal injury attorney Alitowski may be able to help.

Continue reading "Fort Lauderdale Sexual Harassment Lawyer Discusses Your Rights" »

Broward injury lawyers Andrew Alitowski and William Moore represent clients who have suffered racial discrimination. The Civil Rights Act, which President Lyndon Johnson signed into law in 1964, prevents employers from engaging in any kind of discrimination on the basis of race. Fort Lauderdale employment discrimination attorney Alitowski advises that this includes discrimination at any stage of employment, including hiring.

For example, an employer cannot refuse to hire an African-American applicant in favor of a Caucasian applicant on the basis of race. This is true even if the employer believes that, for whatever reason, his customers or clients would respond better to a person of a certain race (or not of a certain race). The Fort Lauderdale discrimination lawyers also note that employers cannot discriminate during training. This means that an employer cannot elect to train people of certain races for better positions or give them more comprehensive training, if these actions are done on the basis of race. Likewise, an employer should not take race into consideration when evaluating employees for promotions or at any stage of employment. Racial harassment or a pattern of racial discrimination are both good evidence of ongoing discrimination in the workplace. Racial jokes can make employees feel uncomfortable and as though they cannot advance at their jobs, which is tremendously problematic. An experienced and compassionate Broward employment discrimination attorney can advise you of your rights in the workplace.

Discrimination on the basis of national origin is similar to racial discrimination in your workplace. Like the racial discrimination ban, the national origin discrimination provisions are found in the Civil Rights Act, a sweeping piece of federal legislation that has changed the social landscape of American in the 45 years since it was enacted. It is illegal for an employer to discriminate against you on the basis of where you were born or where your family originated. This is true even in the post-September 11 world, because the laws of the United States are designed to protect everyone, even when particular ethnic groups become unpopular due to political circumstances. For instance, an employer cannot refuse to hire a job applicant because of his ideas about people of Middle Eastern descent, nor is it acceptable for co-workers and superiors to crack jokes about a person’s heritage or national origin when it makes that person feel intimidated.

Harassment or discrimination on the basis of sex, race, national origin, religion, pregnancy status, and disability are not only wrong, but they are also against the law. An experienced employment discrimination attorney can advise you of the best course of action in your particular case. You may be entitled to recover damages, including compensation for the wages you lost when you were passed over for promotions due to your race or national origin.

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Palm Beach injury attorneys Alitowski and Moore handle a variety of cases based on discrimination and harassment, which often occurs in the workplace. Although many kinds of discrimination and harassment have nothing to do with sex, such as religious discrimination or racial discrimination, many forms of discrimination have a gender component. Frequently, these tough situations hit women hard on both a personal and an economic level. Women who experience discrimination may receive fewer benefits, have difficulty retaining their jobs, or get less pay for their work.

According to West Palm Beach injury lawyer Alitowski, pregnancy discrimination remains an issue for young women. Congress enacted protections from women in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prevents discrimination against women because they are pregnant or could become pregnant. An employer cannot refuse to hire a woman due to these factors so long as she can perform her job adequately. This is true even if the employer believes that clients or customers would be disapproving. Employers must even hold the pregnant employee’s job if she must miss work to give birth or for other conditions related to her pregnancy for at least the same period it would be held for other workers who were sick and had to miss work. Additionally, she must receive the same benefits as other employees who take sick leave receive. Women comprise almost half of the workforce in the United States and although they have made tremendous advancements, women still find that discrimination on the basis of pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions poses a problem at some jobs. An example of discrimination is an employer who attempts to deny a woman health insurance during the period she is on maternity leave, although employees who miss several weeks of work due to illness continue to receive the benefits.

Palm Beach personal injury lawyer Alitowski notes that gender discrimination is a problem many women in Florida still face every day. The Civil Rights Act also protects people – in most cases, women – from discrimination on the basis of their sex. Gender discrimination is not necessarily patently sexual, although it often takes that form. A boss or co-worker who makes sexual jokes or comments about an employee’s body is engaging in sexual harassment. Likewise, a company that does not promote a successful woman because she is doing a job more traditionally performed by men is engaging in gender discrimination. Extremely overt advances, such as attempts to get sexual favors or some other kind of relationship in order to retain a job or win promotions, are perhaps the most well-known type of gender discrimination.

Women continue to grapple with these issues. Gender discrimination affects men, although rarely, and one man famously – and successfully – sued the public Mississippi University for Women to be admitted into the school’s nursing program because the closest one admitting men was very far from his home.

Continue reading "Florida Discrimination Lawyer Discusses Discrimination and Harassment Affecting Women in the Workplace" »