Long Island Workplace Retaliation Lawyers

As an employee on Long Island, you have rights when it comes to how you are treated and paid in your workplace.

Employers must respect federal and New York state laws that are designed to protect workers against unlawful discrimination, and that are designed to ensure workers are paid fairly and otherwise treated fairly on the job. However, in some situations, workers will face negative consequences from an employer if they decide to exercise their rights. Such negative consequences are known as “retaliation,” and there are a wide variety of federal and state laws that prohibit workplace retaliation. According to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), retaliation “is the most frequently alleged basis of discrimination in the federal sector” and one of the most common sources of employee complaints.

It is important to understand that retaliation is unlawful and that you have options. One of the experienced Long Island workplace retaliation lawyers at our firm can speak with you today about filing a retaliation claim under federal or New York state law.

The EEOC, the New York State Division of Human Rights, New York State Department of Labor, the U.S. Department of Labor, and other agencies enforce federal and state laws that prohibit retaliation by employers against employees. Both federal and state law prohibit retaliation for making a complaint of discrimination or sexual harassment. The NYS Department of Labor defines retaliation as “any unfavorable action against an employee for complaining about labor law violations or reporting them to the authorities.” In other words, any unfavorable action taken by an employer against an employee because that employee has exercised his or her rights by filing a complaint or participating in a complaint process can face serious consequences. Examples of retaliation may include but are not limited to:

• Termination or dismissal from the job;
• Reduction in work hours;
• Rescheduling work hours to a less desirable time;
• Reassignment to a less desirable position or jobsite location;
• Reduction in pay;
• Failure to give a promised raise;
• Failure to give a pay increase that is supposed to apply to all employees;
• Taking disciplinary action against the employee;
• Engaging in more intensive or critical supervision of the employee;
• Demoting the employee;
• Transferring the employee to a less desirable;
• Taking away privileges from an employee;
• Taking away certain employee benefits;
• Assigning an employee more difficult or time-consuming job duties;
• Engaging in verbal or physical abuse against the employee;
• Making threats against the employee;
• Threatening or actually reporting the employee to authorities for issues like immigration status; or
• Spreading false rumors about the employee.