Documenting Discrimination And Your Efforts To Stop It Is Essential One of the most common defenses employers use in discrimination cases is claiming they didn’t realize you were complaining about illegal conduct. Instead, they might argue that they thought your concerns were about unfair or unkind treatment—actions that, while unpleasant, are not unlawful. For instance, an employer might claim they misunderstood your complaint about being treated differently than colleagues of a different racial or ethnic background. They could argue they believed you were simply upset about general workplace dynamics rather than discrimination. This is where documentation becomes critical. A clear, detailed paper trail can prevent your employer from relying on this “play dumb” strategy. Specific, documented communication leaves no room for misinterpretation and significantly strengthens your position. Thirty years ago, creating such a record was…Read More
What is Workplace Discrimination, And How Is It Defined In Florida? Florida is an at-will employment state, meaning that, in most cases, employees can be hired or fired for any reason or even no reason at all. This includes reasons that may be mistaken or unfair, as long as they are not illegally discriminatory. The law in Florida only prohibits firing someone for specific, unlawful reasons. Many of these reasons are tied to class-based protections, such as: Race Religion Gender Ethnicity And other similar categories In addition to these broad protections, there are more specific prohibitions under Florida law. For example, employers are not allowed to discriminate against employees for: Filing workplace injury or accident claims. Objecting to or refusing to participate in actions that violate laws, rules, or regulations applicable to the business. Complaining…Read More
