Religious discrimination is as old as religion itself, and modern countries like the United States have taken steps to make it illegal, but it continues to happen. Workers may face discrimination on the job that leads to constant harassment, wrongful termination, lower pay or even the inability to get a job at all.
If you think this doesn’t happen often, here are a few concerning facts you should be aware of:
- Those of the Jewish faith account for under 1% of the world’s population, but they are one of the religious groups that experience the most overall discrimination.
- For women, the issue is often over religious dress. They face discrimination for what they wear in countries and workplaces where that type of dress is not common.
- Any type of unequal treatment can count as discrimination. For instance, if a number of non-religious workers all make $50 per hour and a Muslim or Jewish worker who does the same job and holds the same title makes just $20 per hour, that could count as discrimination. The same is true when workers get fired, get passed over for promotions or get reprimanded and written up more than their coworkers.
One of the biggest keys, when looking for true discrimination, is a pattern of events. When the same things happen to multiple workers of the same faith, it can show that there is bias within the company that is negatively impacting that community.
Have you experienced religious discrimination on the job? If you have, make sure you know exactly what legal options you have in California.