Can a Poor Performance Review Be Evidence of Retaliation?
Retaliation — which is adverse treatment of an employee by an employer in response to the employee engaging in protected activity — can take many different forms, and in many circumstances, it may not be overt. Employees are protected against retaliation under various state and federal laws, including the Florida Civil Rights Act (FCRA), Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and many other federal laws that prohibit types of employment discrimination or provide protections to employees in relation to fair pay and workplace safety.
One way in which an employer can engage in retaliation is by giving an employee a poor performance review, or a series of poor performance reviews, which the employer expects to ultimately permit them to deny the employee certain benefits or promotions, or to terminate the employee. What should you know about poor performance reviews and retaliation? Our South Florida employment discrimination attorneys can explain in more detail below.
Know the Varied Forms Retaliation Can Take
Whether you have reported an employer for sexual harassment or discriminatory pay, or you have merely participated in a discrimination investigation being conducted in your workplace, it is essential to be aware of retaliation and to know the forms it can take. According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the following are common examples of retaliation:
- Reprimanding the employee;
- Giving a lower or poorer performance evaluation;
- Engaging in verbal or physical abuse;
- Transferring the employee to a less desirable role;
- Assigning the employee to less desirable tasks or shifts;
- Increasing scrutiny of the employee;
- Threatening the employee;
- Spreading rumors about the employee; or
- Attempting to make the employee’s work more difficult.
Poor performance reviews — when they are not warranted by the employee’s actual performance — can be a common form of retaliation.
Using Poor Performance Reviews as Evidence of Retaliation
How can you use a lower performance review, or a poor performance review, as evidence of retaliation? It will be important to gather evidence surrounding your performance review, such as:
- Proof that your performance in specific contexts was not as your employer described it;
- Evidence from other employees’ performance reviews that your employer is holding you to a different standard;
- Showing that your employer failed to note positive accomplishments in your review; and
- Highlighting how your employer’s adverse comments in your review are unsubstantiated.
Contact a Palm Beach Gardens Employment Discrimination Attorney for Help Filing a Retaliation Claim
Unlawful retaliation can occur in many different circumstances in a workplace, and it can take different forms. Poor performance reviews can be one way in which an employer engages in retaliation. A negative performance review might occur in conjunction with other behaviors or actions that are indicative of retaliation, or it may be the primary way in which an employer retaliates. If you recently received a poor performance review that does not seem grounded in actual fact, and it occurred after you filed an employment claim or participated in a workplace investigation, it is essential to seek legal help. One of the experienced Palm Beach Gardens employment discrimination and retaliation lawyers at Sconzo Law Office can speak with you today to learn more about your case and to help you move forward with a retaliation claim. Contact us for more information about how we can assist you.
Source:
eeoc.gov/retaliation