Employment discrimination occurs when an employer takes an adverse employment action, such as firing, failing to hire, demoting, failing to promote, or reducing pay because of an employee's protected characteristic. Under Pennsylvania and federal law, employment discrimination for the following reasons is illegal:
-Race Discrimination against a member of any race
-Sex or Gender Discrimination against any sex or gender, including discrimination based on sexual orientationor gender identity
-Pregnancy Discrimination against an employee because of her pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical condition
-Age Discrimination against those age 40 and above
-Disability Discrimination against those with a physical or mental impairment that limits their ability to perform activities of daily life, or is perceived to have such an impairment
-Religious Discrimination against a member of any religion, including those who are not religious
-National Origin Discrimination against an employee because of his or her nationality or ethnicity
If you believe you have been discriminated against for any of the above reasons, you will need to file a charge of discrimination with an administrative agency such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission (PHRC), the Pittsburgh Commission on Human Relations, or the Allegheny County Human Relations Commission, before you can file a lawsuit. Elzer Law Firm, LLC can help with both the administrative process as well as the lawsuit. Please contact a Pittsburgh employment discrimination lawyer a consultation today.