When you have a job, you can encounter so many different kinds of scenarios. More often than not, these scenarios involve your employer. It is the reason that employees all around the world sue their employers for different kinds of reasons. So, it would be a little difficult to share all the possible lawsuits that you can file against your employer. However, there are some that you need to know if you are working under an employer.
You need to know what your rights are so that you don’t get exploited by your employer. Most people don’t have any idea that they can sue their employer for certain things, and therefore they remain silent over issues where the law can give them a way out. That’s why keeping yourself informed by consulting the best employment lawyer NYC is important to help you protect your rights. They can also help you with the legal process once you decide to file a lawsuit against your employer.
In this blog, I’ve shared a list of lawsuits that you should about. But, remember that this list is not complete and exhaustive. As I’ve mentioned earlier that there are many reasons that employees can use to file a lawsuit. So, it is quite impossible to pen them all down in a single go. However, these lawsuits are still the most important ones, and these are also the most frequently files lawsuits in almost all corners of the world.
Here you go:
An Interview Question That’s Illegal
The interview scares us all. Not because it is something we are not sure of, but because we are terrified of not getting the job. Imagine, if you don’t get the job not because you were not able to do the job, but because of your gender, race, disability, or any other thing like that.
If your interviewer is asking you the questions that are specifically targeted to your gender or race. For example, if you are a woman and they ask you if you have any children or not, or if you want to have children in the future, then this one excellent example of an illegal question. Such kind of problems doesn’t have to do anything with your ability to do the job. But, if you think you didn’t get the job due to the discriminative agenda behind these questions, then, by all means, you can sue the employer.
Personal Injury
Not all, but many jobs entails a certain kind of risk factor with them. For example, if you are an asbestos miner, the chances are that you might end up getting mesothelioma. In such a case, your employer should pay the mesothelioma compensation. But, if they don’t do so, you have all the legal rights to sue them, claiming they are the cause of your health. These kinds of lawsuits come under the category of personal injury.
Every employee has the right to a safe workplace. If you can prove in the court that your safety and health were neglected by your employer, then you have a rock-solid case against your employer.
If They Discipline You Unfairly
Every company or every employer has a discipline policy. It is very important that you make yourself well aware of the discipline policy of your employer if you don’t want to be discriminated against.
If you don’t understand what unfair discipline means, then let me build a scenario for you. Imagine you just had an argument with your manager. In the heat of the moment, he imposes some kind of discipline or disciplinary action against you that he wouldn’t do with any other similarly situated co-worker. This is a classic example of unfair discipline, and you have the complete right to sue the company for this discriminative discipline.
If Your Termination is Illegal
You may think that illegal termination is something very uncommon since almost every employee signs a contract with the company that is legally binding for both the employee and the employer. However, there are still certain cases in which employees sometimes believe that they had a verbal argument, promising continued employment, or that they were terminated due to their legally protected class.
If you don’t want to be confused about the legality of your termination, then here are the reasons for termination that are not legal and can be sued.
- Lack of reason for termination by the employer
- Termination based on poor performance without any reports that show poor performance
- Termination as a discipline right after you’ve filed a complaint
- Investigation is delayed
- Termination because the managers are failing to follow the policy of the company
If any of the above is the reason for your termination, then you may have a case against your employer.
Unfair/Illegal Decisions about Medical Requests
Medical leave rules can indeed seem like a black hole for both the managers and employees. It is because of the reason that it is very easy to misstep these rules to get legal attention. However, The FMLA, ADA, and workers’ compensation protect employee rights to medical leave and reasonable accommodation.
If your employer or the manager fails to comply with these rules and doesn’t grant you a leave, then you can take this matter to court without giving it a second thought because it is a right given to you by the law.
Exemption Decisions That Are Unlawful
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) clearly states the rules about which employee is eligible for overtime pay and other compensations and which is not. It’s true that it’s not easy to determine which employee is eligible and therefore, companies usually get it wrong.
If you think that you are an employee who has been incorrectly categorized, then you can build a case against your employer.
Docking Pay
It is very important that you know that your employer has very little room in reducing your pay. Discipline doesn’t mean a reduced pay. Also, you and your employer can’t negotiate the overtime pay other than the law stipulates.
To put it simply, if you are an employee, you have no right to waive your overtime pay. And, if you are an employer, and you allow this to happen, then you may to face the law.
Discrimination among Employees
As we all know, that discrimination is a buzzword in our current society. In recent years, both people and laws have become very sensitive towards any kind of discrimination. It is considered as a social evil. So, if you feel that you are discriminated at your workplace based on anything regarding to your personality, then you have a strong case against the employer.
However, where obvious discrimination is simple and easy to recognize, you should know that subtle and sugar-coated discrimination can also be a ground of a lawsuit.
However, to win a discrimination lawsuit against your employer, you should prove four basic things:
- You must be a part of legally protected class
- You must be able to perform well at your job
- You must show the negative employment action that has made you suffer
- Lastly, that negative action was promoted by your protected class
If you have all these qualifiers in your file, you are definitely in for the win.
Workplace Harassment
As I’ve mentioned earlier, a safe workplace is the right of every woman and man. Sadly, it is a fact that workplace harassment exists and it is very traumatizing to the victim.
While human rights activists all around the world are fighting against workplace harassment issue, the law also steps in to help you. So, you don’t have to bear even a single occasional comment or random offensive joke that constitutes harassment. If it is happening at your workplace, then you have a right to file the lawsuit against the company and against that particular individual as well.
Physical/Sexual Harassment
One can simply not turn a blind eye on the sexual harassment that goes around you. Especially, if you are a victim of any kind of sexual harassment in your workplace, you should not remain silent about it at any cost. Understand that unwelcomed sexual advance has no place at work.
If you are dealing with harassment from your manager, boss, supervisor, or even from a random person at work, file a complaint right away with the human resource department. If they tend to your case well and good but if you are not satisfied with their response, then you certainly have a case against the company and you should exercise your legal right because nobody deserves to be harassed in any manner.
If they try to Defame You
Of course, defamation sounds like a good reason to sue your employer but before you do that, you need to make sure that you understand what defamation actually means.
“Defamation only occurs when an untrue statement is made about an employee that results in the employee losing employment opportunities and potentially pay as well.”
If you think that a rude or mean comment from your manager or boss accounts as defamation, they there is a huge chance that you may be wrong. So, if you are making a lawsuit, make sure that you get every detail right so that you end up winning in the end of the day.
