Plaintiff seeks to recover damages from her employer for employment discrimination and sexual harassment. Plaintiff states in her complaint that the acts of the defendant are so outrageous that punitive damages are due up to and including attorney fees.
Workplace Discrimination For Weight In Allegheny
State:
Multi-State
County:
Allegheny
Control #:
US-000296
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Word;
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FAQ
The workplace is a common setting where weight bias and discrimination occur. Employees who have a higher body weight face weight-based inequities in employment including unfair hiring practices, lower wages, fewer promotions, harassment from co-workers, and unfair job termination.
The answer depends on your claims and willingness to pursue litigation. If your claims are strong and you are invested in the litigation process, it can be very “worth it” to feel you are standing up for accountability, getting compensation for your injuries, and incentivizing the company to change its ways.
Older adults face more subtle forms of weight stigma in their daily environment. For example, in many doctor's offices, examination tables and gowns do not accommodate people of larger size. This is also true on many commercial airplanes, where seats will not fit an individual who carries significant excess weight.
Thirdly, there are other legal avenues to consider when pursuing a fat-shaming lawsuit, such as defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Defamation occurs when someone makes false and damaging statements about you, in this case, about your weight, in a way that harms your reputation.
Although there is no explicit federal law that identifies obese individuals as a protected class under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), at least one state and a handful of cities across the country have passed laws prohibiting employers from discriminating against employment candidates based on weight.
Despite the overall lack of state level legislation, there are some cities in the United States that have made weight and height a protected category for anti-discrimination. These include San Francisco and Santa Cruz, California; Binghamton, New York; Madison, Wisconsin; and Urbana, Illinois.
Filing a Claim for Employment Discrimination Before you may file a lawsuit against your employer in court, you must first file a complaint of discrimination with either the EEOC or PHRC. You must file the complaint with either agency within 180 days of the adverse employment action.
Evidence takes several forms. It includes your testimony, which is the very first evidence gathered by EEOC. It also includes written materials such as evaluations, notes by your employer, letters, memos, and the like. You will be asked to provide any documents you may have that relate to your case.
If you feel you have experienced illegal discrimination, you can file a complaint or report a bias incident to the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission (PHRC). Email the PHRC or call your regional office.
