Nationality Discrimination

Employment Attorneys Advocating for Employees in Miami

Miami has grown in part because of immigration from other countries. As of 2000, 34% of the population was Cuban. Around 5.6% was Nicaraguan, and 5.5% was Haitian. According to the United Nations Development Program, 59% of the residents of Miami are foreign-born Employers are prohibited from engaging in nationality discrimination in Miami by federal, state, and local laws. The Miami nationality discrimination lawyers at Phillips & Associates are dedicated to fighting for employees who have faced discrimination because of a person’s actual or perceived national origin.

Nationality discrimination, also known as national origin discrimination, happens if a prospective or existing employer makes an adverse employment decision against you because you are, or perceived to be, from a certain country. You are protected against nationality discrimination in the workplace even if you were born in the U.S. but had parents or ancestors from a different country. You may also face national origin discrimination if your employer has negative stereotypes about the place from which your ancestors came and makes employment decisions on that basis, or allows jokes, ridicule, and/or hostility about your national origin.

National Origin Discrimination

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is the federal law that prohibits nationality discrimination. You are protected from an adverse employment decision based on your nationality in connection with the terms, conditions, or privileges of your job. For example, you may have faced nationality discrimination if you were not hired because you are Iraqi or if you were not promoted because you are Somali. In some instances, there may be overlaps between national origin discrimination and religious or racial discrimination.

The Florida Civil Rights Act was patterned after Title VII and also prohibits national origin discrimination. Federal case law is also applicable to Florida Civil Rights Act cases. National origin discrimination can include making adverse decisions based on aspects of identity that are reflective of national origin, such as an employer’s perception that a worker is of a certain national origin, a worker’s marriage to someone of a certain nationality, or because of the linguistic, cultural, or physical characteristics that a worker shares with a certain nationality. A nationality discrimination attorney in Miami can help you hold your employer accountable for these unlawful actions.

Job Conditions

Harassment based on nationality is a form of discrimination. Harassment may consist of jokes, slurs, pranks, memes, or physical misconduct in the workplace that is carried out because of an employee’s national origin, whether actual or perceived. This type of harassment is actionable if it is so pervasive or so severe that it creates a hostile work environment. For example, if you are an Iranian immigrant, and every day your coworkers place camels on your desk, call you a terrorist, and tell you to go back to your country, you may have a claim of nationality discrimination based on a hostile work environment.

It is unlawful for your employer to retaliate against you because you engaged in the protected activity of complaining about discrimination or harassment, whether you complained internally to HR or filed a charge with the EEOC. Moreover, you should not face retaliation for opposing the unlawful practice of nationality discrimination or participating in an investigation related to a coworker’s claim of discrimination. Our Miami nationality discrimination attorneys can help you bring a retaliation claim together with your discrimination claim if needed.

More importantly, your workplace should not be segregated based on employees’ national origins. For example, if you work in a restaurant, your employer should not require employees of Mexican origin work in the kitchen, while only allowing employees of European descent to serve customers because it wants to present a certain kind of image.

The Miami-Dade County Human Rights Ordinance is enforced by the Commission on Human Rights Board, which is a quasi-judicial board. This ordinance also prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of national origin.

Hire an Employment Discrimination Attorney

Nationality discrimination in Miami workplaces can take various forms and can have significant economic and emotional consequences for a worker. It is wise to talk to an attorney about which law would provide you with the most effective relief for nationality discrimination. If you are harmed by discrimination in Miami, you should consult a seasoned employment attorney. Call the experienced litigators at Phillips & Associates at (866) 229-9441 or complete our online form for a free consultation with a nationality discrimination lawyer in Miami.