Workplace discrimination damages things for everyone. A less diverse workplace means that fewer creative ideas will be shared, and companies may overlook glaring issues that could have been stopped by having someone with a different viewpoint on the staff. If you’re unsure about how discrimination works or what even counts as discrimination, here are the most common types of discrimination people face in the workplace.
Age Discrimination.
Discrimination based on age can be horrible because it goes both ways. Young applicants are often underpaid or overlooked because of their assumed inexperience. On the other hand, older applicants are less likely to be hired because they’re considered ‘past their prime’ despite a lifetime of experience. Younger people are less likely for promotions than older employees, and more senior employees are less likely to get to head creative departments.
Disability Discrimination.
Discrimination against people with disabilities has been a high point of contention in the United States for the last sixty years. From disabled people being removed after petitioning the capital to their lower higher rates and even lower average wages despite being able to do plenty of jobs at the average or better.
Sexual Orientation.
Sexual orientation is still discriminated against, even though so many people assume we’ve solved this issue. Although we’ve come a long way, LGBT+ people still have to face the fear of retaliation from their workplace if they want to live openly as themselves.
Religious Discrimination.
Especially in the last twenty years, there have been tons of discrimination cases against people who are parts of religion that aren’t what most of the people in their workplace follow. This can be extremely painful because it forces people to hide a large amount of what builds them up.
National Origin.
If someone isn’t originally from the United States, they can face a lot of discrimination. Whether it’s because of cultural differences, an accent, or anything else that cruel people can pick out-, they’ll find what they can to make immigrants miserable.
Sexual Harassment.
Sexual harassment is still a serious problem, despite movements like Me Too working so hard to create a space where victims can report pests easily. Unfortunately, just because people can report it more freely doesn’t mean many people are changing their behavior. Sexual harassment can make someone feel unsafe and unwelcome in their working environment.
Racism and Colorism
Harassment based around race has been happening for longer than America has been a country: but we still owe it to each other to try and make it stop. Colorism is similar because it disparages people of darker tones within the same race, but racism is far more common. Both make people feel terrible about their skin color and leave them feeling unsafe and unwanted.
All of these types of discrimination are horrifying because these are things that people can’t help. Nobody can change the color of their skin or their sexuality on a whim, and people shouldn’t punish them for just trying to live. If you face this type of harassment at work, it’s time to talk to human resources or possibly even move forward with a lawsuit.
