Employers and employees in Maryland should be aware that discrimination at work can be grounds for a lawsuit. A person who is mistreated, denied employment opportunities, or fired based on their age, race, religion, sex, national origin or disability may have the option of filing a lawsuit against an employer.
These cases can be complicated, and the two sides may have dramatically different takes on the situation. An employer may feel confident that their decisions are lawful, but an employee may have evidence to support claims that he or she has been the victim of discrimination in the workplace. An example of this dynamic can be seen in a recent case involving a man who was fired. He claims his termination violated his rights, while the employer argues that they were justified in letting the man go.
On one side of the argument is the man who was fired. He is now 62 and says that age discrimination played a factor in his termination. He says that his employer explained that the company was downsizing and that was why he was being fired, but the company apparently hired a younger person to fill his position. He says that the company then changed their story and said the man had been fired because of his difficulty working as part of a team.
On the other side of the argument is the company that has defended their decision to fire the man. Although there were different reasons given for the termination, each was a factor in the termination.
Initially, a court sided with the company, ruling that the man did not have enough evidence to support a discrimination claim. However, an appeals court overturned the ruling and stated that the shift in explanations was enough to suggest that the firing may have been the result of age discrimination. It will be interesting to see what the final ruling in this case will be.
This case is like so many others involving claims of discrimination, as it involves two sides seeing the same situation very differently. That is why these cases can be so complicated. Employers have the right to defend their hiring and firing decisions and employees have a right to challenge them if they feel such decisions involved discrimination. No matter what side of the debate a person is on, it can be crucial to have legal support and representation.
Source: AARP, “Changing Reasons for Firing May Be Evidence of Age Discrimination,” Lisa McElroy