Kentucky and Ohio Employers Cannot Discriminate Against Employees Because of their National Origin!
Employees in Kentucky and Ohio are entitled to protection from discrimination based on their national origin. At Thompson Legal LLC, we are committed to upholding equality in the workplace and fighting against national origin discrimination.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII)
Title VII prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, and national origin. TVII also protects employees and applicants from harassment and retaliation because of an employee’s national origin.
“It shall be an unlawful employment practice for an employer. . .to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any individual, or otherwise to discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of such individual’s race, color, religion, sex, or national origin”
42 U.S. Code § 2000e–2
Most private employers that employ at least 15 employees that work at least 20 weeks a year and public employers must follow the requirements of Title VII. Unfortunately, Title VII’s protections do not apply to independent contractors.
Employers (the company) can be held accountable for discrimination, retaliation, and harassment under Title VII. However, courts will not typically hold managers, officers, supervisors personally liable under Title VII.
Title VII prevents employers from making adverse employment decisions because of an employee’s race, color, national origin, religion. Examples of adverse employment decisions are:
- Terminating an employee
- Forcing the employee to quit (known as Constructive Discharge)
- Demoting an employee
- Failing to promote an employee
- Refusing to hire an employee
If an employee suffered an adverse employment decision because of an employee’s race, color, national origin, religion they can bring a claim under Title VII.
To make a claim under Title VII, the process begins with an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission “EEOC” charge before a lawsuit cannot be filed until the employee files this charge with the EEOC. During the EEOC process, there is an opportunity to resolve and settle the claims. If a resolution cannot be reached, the EEOC process ends with a right-to-sue letter. After the employee receives the right to sue letter, they have 90 days to file a lawsuit. It is very important to speak with an experienced employment lawyer before you file an EEOC charge of discrimination.
Proving National Origin Discrimination:
Most of the time, there is no “smoking gun” evidence of employment discrimination. Courts in Kentucky and Ohio allow for circumstantial evidence of discrimination. Courts use the McDonnell Douglas Corp v. Green “burden-shifting analyze” to determine if an employer discriminated against an employee. The Burden Shifting Analysis looks at other employees (not in a protected class) to see if they were treated better than the discriminated against the employee
Contact Us For A Free Consultation
At Thompson Legal LLC, we are dedicated to fighting against employment discrimination and ensuring that all individuals have equal opportunities in the workplace. Contact us today for a free consultation if you have experienced national origin discrimination in Kentucky or Ohio. Your rights matter, and we are here to help you protect them. Call or text us today at 502-366-2121 for a free consultation if you have any Kentucky or Ohio employment issues.