Being a victim of workplace discrimination can be an especially stressful experience. Not only do you want the discriminatory treatment to stop, you don’t want to be labeled as a serial complainer that no one takes seriously. Unfortunately, many employees who endure discrimination at work are seen this way, and only legal action will lead to relief.
When you think about bringing suit against your employer, you may wonder about the different documents that an attorney may need to review before advising you. This post will provide some insight.
An employee handbook – Your employee handbook will likely set forth specific anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policies, including what type of speech may be accepted as well as how incidents shall be investigated. If your employer has not followed these policies, either in not properly addressing complaints or condoning discriminatory behavior, this may form the basis of a lawsuit.
Your personnel record – Additionally, an employment law attorney will want to review your personnel file. If you have disciplinary issues or poor performance evaluations that may be pretext to mask a discriminatory intent, this could be a very important aspect of your case.
Pay records – If you missed work due to the emotional trauma of the discrimination, you will have to prove damages in that regard. The same applies if you were demoted from a higher-paying job. Either way, your pay records can help in proving a discrimination claim.
If you have further questions about documents an experienced employment law attorney would need to further your case, we invite you to contact us. Please be advised that the preceding is not an exhaustive list, and is not intended to be legal advice.