Best Ohio Race Discrimination Attorney Answer: Can I sue my employer because it changed my job duties because of my race? What can I do when my job moves me to a different position because of my race? Can I bring a racial discrimination claim against my employer? I want to sue for race discrimination in the workplace!
Federal and Ohio law prohibit employers from discriminating against employees on the basis of race. To maintain a cause of action, an employee who believes that his employer has discriminated against him must show, among other things, that he has suffered an adverse employment action. Common examples an adverse employment action are a termination, a demotion, or a reduction in pay. These types of incidents are fairly easy to identify. But, what if an employee feels he has been transferred to a position because of his race and the new position pays the same as the old one, requires of him the same work hours, and affords him a similar title? He may still be able to bring a discrimination claim.
In Deleon v. Kalamazoo County Road Commission, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals (Ohio) held that an adverse employment action may exist where an employee has been transferred to a different position, even when pay, hours, and title have remained the same. In the case, a fifty-three year old Hispanic worker believed that his employer had transferred his position because of race discrimination and age discrimination. The new and old positions paid the man the same wages, required the same hours, and gave him the same title, that of “supervisor.” Moreover, the new position was one for which the man had previously applied. That is, at an earlier point, the man actually wanted this new position. However, when the man originally applied for the position to which he was eventually transferred, it was with the expectation of an increase in salary. The increase in salary was justified, the man felt, because the new position involved exposure to diesel fumes in a poorly ventilated area, conditions not present in his original position.
In determining if an employee could be said to have been discriminated against by virtue of transfer to a job that the employee had once, in fact, applied for, the court looked to a United States Supreme Court case that addressed a similar scenario. Specifically, in Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway Company v. White, the US Supreme Court held: “Whether a particular reassignment is materially adverse depends upon the circumstances of the particular case,” and “should be judged from the perspective of a reasonable person in the plaintiff’s position, considering all the circumstances.” In Burlington, the Court found that the plaintiff had suffered an adverse employment action because she was transferred to a new position that was “more arduous and dirtier.”
Applying Burlington to the facts before it, the court in Deleon held that where “particular circumstances present give rise to some level of objective intolerability,” an adverse employment action may be found even where there has been no demotion or decrease in pay, and even when the employee had previously applied for the position giving rise to the claims.
Because every case of racial discrimination in the workplace is different, every race discrimination case has to be looked at individually. If you feel that you are being discriminated based on your race, whatever race that may be, then call the right attorney. Race discrimination includes being harassed, fired, wrongfully terminated, discriminated against, demoted, wrongfully disciplined, and denied wages. When you call the right attorney to schedule a free and confidential consultation at 866-797-6040, you will meet with a race discrimination lawyer from Spitz, The Employee’s Law Firm who will help you determine the best way to pursue your legal claims.
Disclaimer:
The materials available at the top of this race discrimination page and on this employment law website are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. If you are still asking: “What should I do …”, “I’m being discriminated against …”, “my boss is discriminating against me because …” or “How do I …”, your best option is to contact an Ohio attorney to obtain advice with respect to race discrimination questions or any particular employment law issue. Use and access to this employment law website or any of the links contained within the site do not create an attorney-client relationship. The legal opinions expressed at or through this site are the opinions of the individual lawyer and may not reflect the opinions of Spitz, The Employee’s Law Firm, attorney Brian Spitz, or any individual attorney.