Types Of Discrimination In The Workplace

Employment discrimination simply means imbalanced and biased treatment meted out to some employees on the basis of prejudice. This has been an important and grave issue of concern for companies across the world. Such discrimination occurs when an employer singles out any one employee or a group on the basis of age, race, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion and other reasons. Workplace discrimination can take place in a number of forms that include illegal hiring and firing, on-the-job harassment, denial of a worker’s promotions or raises and unequal pay. For this reason, several laws have been created to protect the people from discrimination and retaliation from their employers. Read on to know the different types of discrimination in the workplace.

 

 

Also known as sexual discrimination or sex-based discrimination, gender discrimination takes place when one gender is preferred over the other. In this case, one employee is treated in an unfair manner or inequitable manner by his employer, on the basis of the employee’s gender.

 

Racial discrimination is the most common form of employment discrimination. Employees are treated harshly or differently based on their race or ethnicity. Though there are laws that prohibit employers to deny a job-seeker employment opportunity because of his/her racial group and characteristics, it is a common practice in most of the workplaces.

 

Middle-aged and older employees are at a higher risk of being terminated in favor of younger employees, who are likely to give the company a younger look at a lower pay. There are companies that prefer hiring younger employees over middle-aged or older ones. Though there are laws that state that no company can discriminate employees on the basis of age pertaining to hiring, promotions, compensation, trainings, benefits, job assignments and layoffs, such practices are seen in workplaces.

 

Disable people have a higher risk of facing discrimination at workplaces. Though laws have been enforced to hire the person as long as he/she possesses the required skills for the job, many organizations do not hire a disabled (differently-abled) person. Those that hire do not provide the necessary facilities that should be available to disabled people that include blind, partially blind and handicapped (whether physically or mentally).

 

Religious discrimination takes place when the employee is treated harshly due to his religious beliefs and practices. Such discrimination take be in the form of special treatment, harassment or refusal to consider the employee’s religious practices.

 

Pregnancy discrimination takes place when an employer treats an employee unjustly just because she is pregnant. Some companies even decide to layoff such employees, on grounds of long leave.  

 

This means that an employee is treated differently just because his/her nationality, accent or ethnicity is not preferred by the employer. For example, a person may not be considered for the job in Australia, even after fulfilling all the requirements, just because he is an Indian. Or a well-deserving candidate is not given a job just because he/she speaks English with an Arabic accent. 

 

This happens when an employee is treated wrongly and harshly simply because he/she is identified as a homosexual, heterosexual or bisexual. For example, a person may not be hired, because he/she is involved in a same-sex relationship.

 

When employees are paid not on the basis of their performance or job title but on the criteria of sex, religion, race, gender, nationality, disability, or age of the employees, it is said to be equal pay and compensation discrimination. Sometimes the discrimination is made when one employee goes ahead and favors his/her employer in some way which others think is unethical or immoral. Chances are that the employee who is providing the favor would have a handsome salary.