The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a landmark U.S. law that prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, or sex. Sex discrimination is still present in today’s workforce and 42% of women in the U.S. have reported gender discrimination on the job. As it’s Women’s History Month, here are 7 examples of sex discrimination at work toward women.
What is sex discrimination?
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission states that “sex discrimination involves treating someone (an applicant or employee) unfavorably because of that person’s sex. The law forbids discrimination when it comes to any aspect of employment, including hiring, firing, pay, job assignments, promotions, layoff, training, fringe benefits, and any other term or condition of employment.”
The severity of sex discrimination can vary and it can happen to anyone, not just women. Here are some real-life examples of workers that were discriminated against at their workplace because of their sex.
Examples of sex discrimination
- A woman applies for an executive seat at the table, but although she exceeds the required qualifications and experience, she is overlooked because the company’s clients don’t feel comfortable with a woman executive figure, and her employer doesn’t want to lose revenue.
- A woman reads a job posting and feels as though some of the requirements are listed specifically to discourage female applicants from applying. The requirements are ludacris and not necessary to perform the role well. When she calls about the position, the company says the posting was a mistake and they don’t have enough money to fill the role. Two weeks later, the woman notices that a man is hired for that position.
- A woman is told that she has to be fired due to company cutbacks, but men with equal positions and less seniority are able to keep their jobs and/or be promoted. She realizes that multiple women were let go, but the men continue to be promoted.
- A woman has been repeatedly refused a promotion opportunity, after working for her company for more than 10 years. Men with less experience, who she trained when they joined the company, keep receiving promotions instead of her.
- A woman finds out that her male counterpart (with the exact same job) is being paid significantly more than her, while she has more experience. (It is estimated that women with full-time jobs still earn only about 77% of their male counterparts salary.)
- A woman receives negative feedback and pay cuts from her employer regarding aggressive sales tactics and a “lack of femininity.” The men in a similar sales role apply the same sales techniques and are awarded for their efforts with bonuses and promotions.
- A woman notices that the men at her company get more time off and better compensation packages than she was offered. When she asks her manager about the discrepancy, he doesn’t give a straight answer.
Sex discrimination not only occurs with women, but it happens with men, and members of the LGBTQIA community. If you feel like you’ve been discriminated against at work due to your sex, your experience may not conform to the above examples. Talk with Baldwin & Vernon to see if you have a sex discrimination case and how you can be compensated.