Post by smarywills on Mar 28, 2007 10:03:59 GMT -5
If you file a complaint of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, etc. against your employer, your employer may respond by producing what appears to be evidence of a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for whatever employment action, was taken against you. However, legally, a violation would still be found if the explanation provided by your employer is a pretext designed to hide the true retaliatory motive.
Typically, pretext is proved through evidence that an employer treated a complainant (you or whoever filed the grievance/complaint of discrimination, etc.) differently from similarly situated employees or that the employer's explanation for an adverse action is not believable.
An adverse action is any action taken to try to keep someone from opposing a discriminatory practice, or from participating in an employment discrimination proceeding.
So, you want to track/demonstrate your employer’s pretext by exposing how the so-called legitimate evidence is nothing more than a cover story to justify the real reason they are targeting you—discrimination, etc.
One way you can show pretext is to show that your employer subjected your work performance to heightened scrutiny/increased observation after you engaged in protected activity (e.g., by opposing discriminatory practicing, participating in a discrimination proceeding, etc.)
I can give you examples of my experience with heightened scrutiny and increased surveillance. After my former employer was found guilty of retaliating against a Black manager, they came after me for providing truthful testimony about what I heard and witnesses being said and done to the Black manager. I was denied a promotion, denied a justified transfer to take on a new career path for which I was working and received training, and I was subjected to increased surveillance. A couple of weeks after my employers were found guilty; I started hearing about everything that was supposedly being “noticed” or being told about how things “appeared”;
-- I was told that people were noticing my hours in and out of the office and that everyone was suddenly questioning my hours. But my employer wouldn’t accuse me of time sheet fraud, missing deadlines, etc., which you think would come from an employee not being at work or working shortened days;
--I was suddenly that everyone questioned if I was really doing work, when I took assignments home. It was stated, “We see you taking things home, but even managers wonder if you really do anything, when you get there.”
--I was suddenly told that all of my emails read “defensively,” with no examples provided and no justification for why this wasn’t a complaint in the previous 7 years I was working at the company;
--I was told that I appeared to be looking for another job; and
--I was told that I appeared to be unhappy and didn’t appear to like working in my department, etc.
Everything I did was scrutinized, pulled apart, and most of it was documented as alleged performance deficiencies. Blanket statements were used to criticize me with no supporting documentation, etc.
So, one of my positions was that I had participated in protected activity (assisting a discrimination investigation) and as a result I was subjected to heightened scrutiny, along with threats to my job security, intimidation, etc.
Always think about exposing pretext, the supposedly legitimate reasons why your employer targeted you with some employment action (termination, denial of promotion, suspension, demotion, etc.). If you are the victim of false employment actions and your employer needs to cover it up, they will begin watching you and documenting whatever they think they can use against you.
Think about the levels of heightened scrutiny and increased surveillance that you are being subjected to compared to other similarly situated employees.
S. Mary Wills
theblackfactor.blogspot.com
The Black Factor is a useful resource for anyone who is Working While Black. The blog provides strategies for dealing with racially-based problems in the workplace, provides perspectives on workplace racism, and allows visitors to share experiences.
Typically, pretext is proved through evidence that an employer treated a complainant (you or whoever filed the grievance/complaint of discrimination, etc.) differently from similarly situated employees or that the employer's explanation for an adverse action is not believable.
An adverse action is any action taken to try to keep someone from opposing a discriminatory practice, or from participating in an employment discrimination proceeding.
So, you want to track/demonstrate your employer’s pretext by exposing how the so-called legitimate evidence is nothing more than a cover story to justify the real reason they are targeting you—discrimination, etc.
One way you can show pretext is to show that your employer subjected your work performance to heightened scrutiny/increased observation after you engaged in protected activity (e.g., by opposing discriminatory practicing, participating in a discrimination proceeding, etc.)
I can give you examples of my experience with heightened scrutiny and increased surveillance. After my former employer was found guilty of retaliating against a Black manager, they came after me for providing truthful testimony about what I heard and witnesses being said and done to the Black manager. I was denied a promotion, denied a justified transfer to take on a new career path for which I was working and received training, and I was subjected to increased surveillance. A couple of weeks after my employers were found guilty; I started hearing about everything that was supposedly being “noticed” or being told about how things “appeared”;
-- I was told that people were noticing my hours in and out of the office and that everyone was suddenly questioning my hours. But my employer wouldn’t accuse me of time sheet fraud, missing deadlines, etc., which you think would come from an employee not being at work or working shortened days;
--I was suddenly that everyone questioned if I was really doing work, when I took assignments home. It was stated, “We see you taking things home, but even managers wonder if you really do anything, when you get there.”
--I was suddenly told that all of my emails read “defensively,” with no examples provided and no justification for why this wasn’t a complaint in the previous 7 years I was working at the company;
--I was told that I appeared to be looking for another job; and
--I was told that I appeared to be unhappy and didn’t appear to like working in my department, etc.
Everything I did was scrutinized, pulled apart, and most of it was documented as alleged performance deficiencies. Blanket statements were used to criticize me with no supporting documentation, etc.
So, one of my positions was that I had participated in protected activity (assisting a discrimination investigation) and as a result I was subjected to heightened scrutiny, along with threats to my job security, intimidation, etc.
Always think about exposing pretext, the supposedly legitimate reasons why your employer targeted you with some employment action (termination, denial of promotion, suspension, demotion, etc.). If you are the victim of false employment actions and your employer needs to cover it up, they will begin watching you and documenting whatever they think they can use against you.
Think about the levels of heightened scrutiny and increased surveillance that you are being subjected to compared to other similarly situated employees.
S. Mary Wills
theblackfactor.blogspot.com
The Black Factor is a useful resource for anyone who is Working While Black. The blog provides strategies for dealing with racially-based problems in the workplace, provides perspectives on workplace racism, and allows visitors to share experiences.