As an employee, you’re entitled to a workplace free of discrimination and harassment. If those rights are violated, there are paths you can take to restore a sense of safety at work. Alcalaw guides employees responding to workplace issues through our service The Path.

Read on to better understand your rights and possible remedies.

Workplace discrimination occurs when an employee is treated unfairly based on certain characteristics, such as race, gender, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, or other protected statuses. Discrimination can occur at different stages of an employee's work life, including when it comes to hiring, promotions, job assignments, pay, training, and termination. Federal, state and local laws prohibit discrimination by employers and provide remedies for employees who have been wronged.
Sexual harassment is unwanted and unwelcome behavior of a sexual nature that creates a hostile or intimidating work environment. It can take different forms, including offensive and suggestive things that are said, unwelcome physical contact and displaying offensive material.
There are two types of sexual harassment:
Quid Pro Quo: This occurs when submission to sexual advances is used as a basis for employment decisions, such as promotions or raises.
Hostile Work Environment: This involves conduct that creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work atmosphere. This can include inappropriate jokes, comments, or physical gestures.
Federal, state and local laws prohibit sexual harassment in the workplace and provide remedies for employees who have been harmed.
Retaliation is when an employee is fired or otherwise punished for speaking up about discrimination or harassment in the workplace. Unfortunately, it is incredibly common - retaliation is the most frequently reported form of discrimination to the EEOC (the federal agency that enforces employment laws). Retaliation can include threats, insults, less favorable working conditions, and generally making work difficult for an employee who has made a report or participated in a complaint and investigation process. Federal, state and local laws prohibit retaliation in the workplace and provide remedies for employees experiencing retaliation.
If you want to raise a flag about discrimination or harassment in your workplace, you may want to report the mistreatment to your employer directly through an internal process, or to a government agency tasked with enforcing laws protecting employees.
Reporting Internally:
Employers typically have policies in place to deal with reports of harassment and discrimination. Reviewing your employer's reporting policy (often found in your employee handbook or through HR) can help you to envision what it might look like to engage in the process.
Reporting to government agency:
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is charged with protecting employees' rights under federal law. You can file a complaint of discrimination and harassment with the EEOC. The complaint will be reviewed by the EEOC to determine if investigation is warranted. Once an investigation is completed, the agency might grant you a hearing or issue a determination about whether discrimination occurred.
In New York state, the Division of Human Rights (DHR) is charged with enforcing the state Human Rights Law. Employees can file complaints of discrimination and harassment with the DHR online. The DHR will investigate your complaint and could schedule a public hearing if they find probable cause to believe discrimination or harassment occurred. Similar divisions exist in each state to protect workers’ rights under the relevant state laws.
In New York City, the Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) is charged with enforcing the NYC Human Rights Law. You can file a complaint of discrimination or harassment with the CCHR online.
There are restrictions on the period of time within which a complaint must be filed under various laws, so you'll want to move forward with intention.
If you are an at-will employee, it means that your employer can fire you at any time, for almost any reason, without giving you prior notice. While being an at-will employee means that you have less job security, it also means that you can leave the job anytime you please.
Severance is financial compensation and other benefits that an employee may receive when their employment is terminated. A severance package can include a lump sum severance payment, which may be offered voluntarily by the employer or as part of a company policy.
If you were recently fired and received a proposed severance package, you need to review the terms carefully. You should be looking to sign an agreement that affords you favorable financial terms and the greatest protection of your rights. Severance packages are almost always conditioned on an employee agreeing to waive certain legal options in order to receive the financial benefit. Typically, that will include executing a general release of claims (an agreement not to sue your employer). That is why it can be helpful to review a severance package with an attorney before signing anything.
An NDA, or Non-Disclosure Agreement, is a legal contract between two or more parties that prohibits them from sharing certain confidential information outlined in the agreement.
In the past, NDAs were commonly used in sexual harassment cases that were settled out of court to protect the privacy of the parties. For example, the person accused of sexual harassment would pay money to settle the claim, but require that the other party sign an NDA to keep the terms of the agreement and the underlying conduct from being disclosed publicly. Within the past few years, federal and state laws have been passed invalidating the use of NDAs in this context.