Race/Color Discrimination

Protect Your Rights with Help From a Miami Employment Lawyer

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects individuals from workplace discrimination on the bases of race and color. Title VII applies to employers with 15 or more employees.

Equal employment opportunity cannot be denied any person because of any of the following:

• His or her racial group or perceived racial group
• His or her race-linked characteristics (hair texture, color, facial features)
• His or her marriage to or association with someone of a particular race or color

Title VII also prohibits employment decisions based on stereotypes and assumptions about abilities, traits, or the performance of individuals of certain racial groups. Title VII's prohibitions apply regardless of whether the discrimination is directed at Whites, Blacks, Asians, Latinos, Arabs, Native Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, multi-racial individuals, or persons of any other race, color, or ethnicity.

How Does Title VII Protect My Workplace?

It is unlawful to discriminate against any individual in regard to recruiting, hiring and promotion, transfer, work assignments, performance measurements, the work environment, job training, discipline and discharge, wages and benefits, or any other term, condition, or privilege of employment. Title VII prohibits not only intentional discrimination, but also neutral job policies that disproportionately affect persons of a certain race or color and that are not related to the job and the needs of the business.

Title VII prohibits offensive conduct, such as racial or ethnic slurs, racial "jokes," derogatory comments, or other verbal or physical conduct based on an individual's race/color. The conduct has to be unwelcome and offensive, and has to be severe or pervasive. Employers are required to take appropriate steps to prevent and correct unlawful harassment. Likewise, employees are responsible for reporting harassment at an early stage to prevent its escalation.

An employer cannot retaliate against an individual for opposing employment practices that discriminate based on race/color (filing a discrimination charge, testifying, or participating in any way in a proceeding under Title VII ). (Participation means taking part in an employment discrimination proceeding. Participation is protected activity even if the proceeding involved claims that ultimately were found to be invalid).

If you have any questions about race or skin color discrimination, call Remer, Georges-Pierre & Hoogerwoerd, PLLC for a consultation at 305.416.5000 or fill out the online request form.