Gender Discrimination and Harassment

Gender Discrimination in the Workplace

Gender discrimination occurs when an employer treats an applicant or employee unfavorably because of sex or gender. Unequal treatment may affect hiring, compensation, assignments, evaluations, promotions, benefits, discipline, layoffs, or termination.

Discrimination can be explicit, but it may also appear through inconsistent standards, gender stereotypes, or workplace policies that unfairly disadvantage a particular group.

Examples of Gender Discrimination

• Paying employees differently for substantially similar work because of gender
• Passing over a qualified employee for promotion while favoring less-qualified employees of another gender
• Assigning opportunities, clients, shifts, or responsibilities according to gender stereotypes
• Applying stricter performance or conduct standards to one gender
• Making employment decisions based on assumptions about caregiving or family responsibilities
• Penalizing an employee for not conforming to traditional expectations about appearance or behavior

Gender-Based Harassment

Harassment does not have to involve sexual advances. It may include repeated sexist remarks, degrading jokes, insults, intimidation, exclusion, or hostility directed at someone because of gender. Harassment may become unlawful when it is sufficiently severe or persistent to alter working conditions or create a hostile environment.

The person responsible may be a supervisor, coworker, customer, client, or another person encountered through work. Employees of any gender can experience or commit gender-based harassment.

Retaliation for Reporting Misconduct

Employees may also have protection from retaliation when they raise a good-faith concern about discrimination, participate in an investigation, support another employee’s complaint, or exercise workplace rights. Possible signs of retaliation include sudden discipline, reduced hours, undesirable assignments, exclusion, demotion, or termination following a complaint.

Steps to Consider

1. Record what happened. Note dates, locations, participants, witnesses, and the words or conduct involved.
2. Preserve relevant evidence. Keep lawful copies of emails, messages, evaluations, policies, schedules, and other records.
3. Review reporting procedures. An employee handbook or workplace policy may identify how concerns should be reported.
4. Document the response. Keep track of reports made, investigations conducted, and any changes in treatment afterward.
5. Seek timely advice. Employment claims can be subject to short filing deadlines, so prompt guidance may be important.

Evaluating a Potential Claim

Whether conduct violates the law depends on the specific facts, including the employer’s actions, the reasons given for them, how comparable employees were treated, the frequency and seriousness of any harassment, and what occurred after a complaint. An employment-law attorney can review the available evidence, explain possible options, and identify applicable deadlines.