Nothing is worse than having your rights violated, in any context and under any circumstance. Unfortunately, though we’ve made great strides, employees still find themselves being made victims of wrongful acts in the workplace. If you believe your rights have been violated in some way, you should strongly consider hiring a seasoned Midlothian employment lawyer who can help you fight for the justice you deserve. Read on to learn more about some of the most common violations of employee rights that we see occur in the workplace here in Virginia.
Five Common Violations of Employee Rights in VA
Some of the most common violations of employee rights in the workplace are as follows:
- Discriminating against employees due to protected characteristics. Employees have a right to be treated fairly and equally in the workplace. If you were fired, harassed, or otherwise treated unfairly due to your race, color, national origin, gender, age, or another protected characteristic, you may have a valid discrimination claim against your employer.
- Violating wage requirements set out by the Fair Labor & Standards Act. Employees in Virginia are afforded rights both under federal and state law when it comes to making the minimum wage and overtime pay. Sometimes, employers will simply make a mistake and misclassify or underpay an employee and will remedy the issue on their own if the employee just brings it to their attention. However, sometimes, employers will neglect to pay employees properly on purpose. If your employer refuses to give you the pay you are owed, our firm is here to help.
- Being retaliated against for exercising their rights. Employees have a right to report injustices in the workplace. This can include acting as a whistleblower by reporting wrongdoing on the part of company higher-ups or reporting an act of discrimination or harassment to HR or other parties. If you report discrimination or act as a whistleblower and your employer docks your pay, fires you, or otherwise retaliates against you, you likely have a valid retaliation claim.
- Participating in or allowing sexual harassment in the workplace. Sexual harassment is one of the most common violations of employee rights. If you’ve been made to feel like you could lose your job if you didn’t comply with sexual advances, or employers/co-workers constantly make sexual comments or “jokes” that make you uncomfortable, you may have a valid sexual harassment claim.
- Creating a hostile work environment. When an employer either creates an environment that causes an employee to feel unsafe, threatened, or bullied, and that environment hinders the employee’s job performance, that employee may have a hostile work environment claim against their employer. However, the hostile work environment must be based on a protected class to be a valid claim (for example, race, color, national origin, gender, age, or another protected characteristic).
If you believe you have been made a victim of discrimination, sexual harassment, retaliation, or any other violation of your rights, contact Passero Employment Law for help today.
