If there has been a time when you
believe that you have either lost your job or did not get hired because of your
race, there are laws that are able to protect you. Harassment due to racial
jokes made or slurs that are offending is a violation of the law. Depending on
your specific situation, would depend on the type of dispute method used. There
are various different methods to resolve your racial discrimination case.
My scenario is a
nurse named Kim and Kim’s boss, the operational supervisor; Pam. Kim is a
Philippine nurse who has been employed with this hospital for 2 years. She is a
good employee, who shows up on time and rarely calls in sick. Kim recently
applied for a nursing supervisor position for the floor she works on. One day,
Kim overheard Pam talking on the phone with someone about Philippine nurses in
general. She said that all Philippino’s always become nurses and they are
usually good nurses, but don’t make good supervisors. When Kim heard Pam say
this on the phone, she was extremely upset. When Pam got off the phone, Kim
said to Pam, “I never knew you felt that way about me.” Pam said, “Oh, Kim, I
wasn’t talking about you.” Kim said, “I don’t know who you were talking about,
but I am a Philippine, and my sisters are not nurses. I did not know that I
would be denied a supervisory decision based on my race and ethnicity!”
In this
scenario, Kim has a right to file a complaint with an administrative agency
where Kim works. She may then file a suit based upon racial discrimination. For
a federal complaint, the complaint would first be filed with the Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission. There are also state and local agencies, to
which complaints may be made under state law. Sometimes the agency will take
your case, and prosecute your discrimination on your behalf. If the agency does
not act within a specific timeframe, or declines to act on your behalf, you may
file a private lawsuit.
In 1964,
Congress passed Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. This law protects the
employee from discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex
(including pregnancy), or religion. Employment discrimination laws were enacted
to prevent discrimination of the employee in the practices of hiring,
promotion, compensation, benefits, assignments, and termination. Although a
single incident does not generally rise to the level of a Title VII violation,
the manual provides examples of conduct egregious enough to constitute a
violation.
Kim decided to
try to first negotiate an out of court settlement, with her layer and the
hospital administrators. Pam, her lawyer, and the staff’s administrators decided
to bring Kim and her lawyer in for mediation. Everyone met together to talk
about the incident and discussed an agreed upon settlement. The hospital and
Pam wanted to save their reputation by resolving this situation with Kim out of
court and the media. Kim wanted to make sure it was resolved with her
confidentiality intact. The guarantee of confidentiality is essential in health
care mediation, as information learned by anyone participating in the mediation
may not be discussed outside confidentiality.
Kim settled out
of court through mediation. There was a monetary settlement awarded, and Kim
decided to turn down the offer of a supervisory position. Pam decided to resign
and search for employment elsewhere. If Kim had not settled this way, she could
have, with her lawyer, tried to go through the process of arbitration. This
process is when a neutral person or group of people who come to a final outcome
decision. Any other disputed issues would be resolved in court. An arbitrator
may award punitive damages which are designed to enforce compliance with the
decision. This decision is, awarded if the erring party acted with malice, or
knowledge that their acts or inactions were likely to cause harm to the other
party.
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