New York employers are aware that workplace discrimination based on race, sex, age and several other factors is illegal. One temp agency that has offices around the country now faces a lawsuit alleging racial discrimination in its employment placement practices from its Chicago office.
Most of the workers who seek employment through the agency are temporary workers who are transported to jobs daily. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of a number of African-Americans. A 29-year-old man stated that he had applied for jobs 20 times through the agency but was chosen for a job only once. An attorney representing the plaintiffs stated that the agency was responding to clients’ wishes or their perception of them by hiring Latinos for the jobs. The plaintiffs are requesting that lost wages be restored because of the company’s hiring practices and for an end to prejudice in hiring by the temp agency.
Whistleblowers who work at the agency allege that Latinos are frequently chosen over African Americans for jobs. Allegedly, the reason is that Latinos are often undocumented aliens. As such, they are individuals who are less likely to complain about lower wages, work conditions or other factors. However, although Chicago’s population is 29 percent African American, the city’s unemployment rate them is 52 percent. Reportedly, the lack of jobs for African Americans may be a factor that contributes to the ongoing violence there.
Race discrimination is prohibited by federal law, not just in the workplace but during the interview and hiring process. People who feel that they have been unfairly treated in this manner may want to meet with an attorney in order to see what remedies may be available to them.