How Many Workplace Discrimination Complaints Are Made Every Year? By Dan Atkerson on February 19, 2016

Group of Multiethnic Diverse Business PeopleWorkplace discrimination is a problem in our job force every day. Whether it’s a product of ignorance, hatred, or both, it can cause extreme hardship on the victim. Workplace discrimination includes any action or decision made regarding an employee or coworker based on one or more protected class, including refusing to hire or promote, wrongful termination, workplace retaliation, bullying, and more.

What Are Protected Classes?

Title VII of the U.S. Constitution includes protections from workplace discrimination in both the government and private sectors. Those protected classes include race, sex, national origin, religion, age, and disability.

If a supervisor makes an employment decision about you, not necessarily a negative one, based on your inclusion in one of the aforementioned classes, it may constitute discrimination.

How Many Complaints Were Made Last Year?

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission releases a report at the beginning of every year which details the amount of discrimination-related complaints it received the previous year. The report also breaks the complaints down into percentages, so that we can see how many of each type of discrimination complaint was made. The EEOC just released its report for the fiscal year of 2015.
  • Racial Discrimination – 31,027
  • Sex Discrimination – 26,968
  • Age Discrimination – 20,144
  • National Origin Discrimination – 9,438
  • Religious Discrimination – 3,502
  • Disability Discrimination – 26,968
Of the numerous complaints listed above, 45 percent were related to a workplace retaliation charge. Retaliation has consistently been the most common discrimination charge. It actually saw an increase of 5 percent from the year before.

Unfortunately, as large as these numbers are, they only include those that came forward and filed complaints. Thousands more employees suffer through workplace discrimination every day.

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Dan Atkerson

Law Offices of Dan A. Atkerson

Dan A. Atkerson has been protecting the rights of North Texas employees for over nearly four decades. He is affiliated with several prestigious legal organizations, including: 

  • The State Bar of Texas
  • The Dallas Bar Association
  • The United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit
  • Texas Supreme Court and all Texas trial and appellate courts
  • Texas federal courts for the Northern and Eastern Districts of Texas

Through aggressive, knowledgeable representation, he has helped clients all over the state reach significant verdicts and settlements. To schedule a consultation at our law firm, request an appointment online or call us at (214) 383-3606.

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