Florida workers have the right to attend work in a safe and healthy environment. Unfortunately, not every workspace offers this. Discrimination can happen anywhere for any reason. It happens even though there are laws to prevent it.
Today, we will look at pregnancy discrimination. Despite laws protecting pregnant workers, they still face discrimination every day. But do you know how to recognize the signs of discrimination?
Discrimination through isolation
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission looks into discrimination against pregnant workers. This discrimination differs from the types talked about most often. Pregnancy discrimination often comes in less dramatic forms than sexual discrimination or harassment. In fact, many pregnant workers do not even notice discrimination.
Discrimination against pregnant workers sometimes looks like an attempt to care for them. For example, coworkers may stop inviting a pregnant worker out. Why? For some, they know the pregnant worker cannot drink. They do not want them to feel awkward in a drinking environment. For others, they want to create distance between themselves and the pregnant worker.
Creating a discouraging environment
Creating distance is a huge tactic in pregnant worker discrimination. Even supervisors do it sometimes. They may drop discussions of promotions or raises. They may stop including the victim in group emails. They may leave them out of meetings. This creates a sensation of alienation. The victim is out of the loop. The hope is that they will grow so discourage they quit on their own.
Unfortunately, discrimination has negative impacts on a victim’s mental health. It even affects productivity which can lead to more harassment. Anyone who thinks they are the victim of discrimination or harassment may want to look more into it.
