It is the right of every employee out there to be treated fairly whilst at work. As part of this, each individual should be shown equality, respect, and dignity when it comes to things such as job opportunities, pay rises, and internal promotions. Whilst this is how things should operate in a perfect world, as we know the world we live in is far from perfect, and so not everyone is treated fairly whilst at work. Through no fault of their own, large numbers of workers in the United States of America are not shown the dignity, respect, and equality that they should from their employers.
Some examples of the kind of behaviors that are demonstrated towards poorly treated workers include the following:
- Getting rid of more senior employees to replace them with younger and cheaper workers.
- Doing this that can be deemed as sexual harrassment and then punishing the employee when they decline these sexual advances.
- Not adequately accommodating the requests for medical leave from disabled employees.
- Discriminating against female employees for taking leave when pregnant by reducing their wage or even terminating their contract.
- Punishing an employee when they refuse to take part in activity that is illegal, such as insider trading.
No matter the type of unfair behavior a worker has been subject to, there are things that they can do to protect themselves and their rights.
The reporting process
Once a worker has reached the stage that they feel they need to report the treatment that they have received from their employer, they need to put in a complaint with the human resources (HR) team. For smaller companies where there is no HR department, then the complaint should be submitted to any member of staff that has authority, such as a line manager or shift supervisor. Writing out a complaint can be quite difficult for some employees, so where this is the case, seek out the assistance of an employment attorney. Click here for more about employment attorneys.
When writing a complaint, there are a number of things to consider which will make it a more effective document. These include the following things:
- Do not make any threats – no employer likes to receive a complaint full of threats and it does not look good if the case goes to court, so do not do it.
- Stay focused – this is not the platform to list off each and every issue that there has ever been with the employer. Instead, focus solely on the illegal conduct that has taken place. Where an employer is unsure what conduct they should include in their complaint, they should speak to an employment attorney.
- Write constructively – make a note of what it is that you would like to see changed within the workplace. For instance, there may be the need to introduce certaining training modules or for certain working practices to be introduced. An effective complaint needs to provide a constructive solution or solutions to any issues that there are which are completely reasonable for the employer to implement.
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