Did I Experience Discrimination When My Employer Denied My Promotion?

If you were recently passed over for a promotion, you may be wondering if your employer discriminated against you in deciding to promote another employee instead. When an employee is denied a promotion, it is important to consider whether discrimination was a factor in the employer’s decision since this is a common way that employers engage in unlawful discrimination. To be clear, if you are passed over for a promotion, this does not necessarily mean that you were discriminated against — your employer may have valid reasons for deciding to pass you over for a promotion, or deciding to promote another employee instead of you. The best way to determine if you have faced unlawful discrimination is to seek advice from an employment discrimination lawyer in South Florida as soon as you can.

Unlawful Discrimination That Can Result in a Promotion Being Denied 

Unlawful discrimination can occur on various bases that can result in an employee being passed over for a promotion under federal and state laws. The following are common examples of discriminatory (and unlawful) reasons that employees are passed over for promotions:

• Employee is pregnant and the employer does not want to promote them with the knowledge that they will be taking FMLA leave within the year;
• Employer believes employees of a particular race, ethnicity, religion, sex, or other protected class are better suited to management positions and thus decides against promoting a particular employee;
• Employer engages in quid pro quo sexual harassment, and when the employee fails to comply with the requested sexual favor, the employer decides against their promotion;
• Employee has a history of a serious health issue that has required time away from work in the past along with disability accommodations, and the employer believes it does not make sense to promote the employee in case they require time off from work in the future; or
• Employer refuses to promote the employee as retaliation against the employee for that employee exercising any rights under federal or state law (such as making a discrimination claim, participating in an employment investigation, or related matters).

Evidence That Your Employer Discriminated When They Denied Your Promotion 

It can be difficult to prove that being passed over for a promotion occurred for discriminatory reasons, but there are different forms of evidence that may be helpful, such as:

• Performance reviews that show you performed well at work and should have been promoted;
• Electronic communications that reveal the employer’s discriminatory reasons for denying the promotion;
• Witnesses in the workplace; and/or
• History of the employer engaging in similar discriminatory acts.

Contact a Palm Beach Gardens Employment Discrimination Lawyer 

Employment discrimination can take many different forms, and it can occur for various reasons. One way in which employees can experience unlawful discrimination in the workplace is being passed over for a promotion because of a discriminatory reason. While an employee who is passed over for a promotion will not automatically have a discrimination claim — there may be valid reasons under the law that you were denied a promotion — it may be possible to prove discrimination. To find out more about moving forward with an employment discrimination claim under state or federal law, you should get in touch with an experienced Palm Beach Gardens employment discrimination attorney at Sconzo Law Office. Contact us today to learn more about how we can assist you with an employment discrimination case in South Florida.

Sources:

eeoc.gov/statutes/title-vii-civil-rights-act-1964

eeoc.gov/statutes/age-discrimination-employment-act-1967

eeoc.gov/statutes/genetic-information-nondiscrimination-act-2008

leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0760/0760ContentsIndex.html