Discrimination and harassment

[Lmayer78]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?

 

[Lmayer78]

Tx, i have been working at this company for 3 months now, everything was fine until they moved me to this one dept. And started being bullied by a coworker, and finally got tired of it and complained to my boss, the second time crying and almost walked out because it was so bad, long story shorter, my boss says the next step would be talking to hr, well i was a big girl until i overheard my coworker and another coworker saying omg u see thats why i hate f'ing white people, nasty trashy, theres never an in between there either nasty trashy, or stuck up snobs, also mentioning 2 of my other white coworkers, omg have u seen there cars, trashy, trying to get away from there trashy husbands, in there trashy cars, etc. Well needless to say i went to hr made a written statement they said they would investigate it, its been 2 weeks, since then, i have been moved all over the company while the ones who did the wrongs sit in there cozy offices, changing my hours, claiming there checking my grading because my numbers seem to be different than everyone elses when ive never had a problem, i have to call my boss everyday having to ask him where and when i work when i never had to , it just seems like i am being punished for something they did and i dont know what to do, since the bullying and harassment, i have had to be put on clonazepam for the stress and anxiety, and some other health issues, i just feel like crying everyday, i need a job i cant just quit but i believe i do not deserve this, i also believe that if it was reversed and i would have said i fing hate black people or mexican people i would have been fired on the spot but now instead of the coworker bullying me its the company what can i do, please help!!!

 

[cbg]

The first thing you can do is tell us what was done to YOU. Not what you overheard two people saying to each other, but what was said or done directly to you, that you complained about first.

 

[commentator]

There is no protection in labor law which requires people you work with to speak about you nicely. And there is no requirement that you be treated fairly. If you walk off the job, under the circumstances you have described, it is not terribly likely that you would be able to get unemployment benefits until you find another one.

You have only been at this job a short time. It sounds as though you are fairly new to the labor force, just from my guess. Most people who have been working several years have developed much thicker skins about the day to day he said/she said interactions with co workers that make up a work life.

You do realize that what you heard that was such a huge event was based on your eavesdropping, and you were not mentioned specifically, don't you? As it was, it was an opinion, expressed in a private conversation by a co worker, about certain people of a group you happen to belong to. I suspect that if you were a member of a minority group such as you mentioned, and you overheard co workers saying something negative about your minority group as a whole, and you made a complaint to HR, they might be warned to keep their private opinions out of the workplace, but they wouldn't be fired on the spot as you imagine.

incidentally, the supervisor or HR may say something to these co- workers, may have already given them a reprimand. You will never be told what has happened or given any further feedback about the matter. It is definitely not required that they follow up or make them apologize to you or stop talking about you. It is definitely not going to make you more well liked, either way.

You make the choice about whether or not you are going to be victimized by the way you are being treated, whether you sit up at night crying and worrying about it, have to go on medication for the stress. You repeatedly say "I believe....." and "I feel...." which does not necessarily make something so. There are really very few rights and protections for workers in today's labor force, and your choice is to make the best of it or leave.

In the situation you are in, if I were you, I believe I'd be in the market for another job, it does not sound like this one is working out, and you are in a very employer friendly "at will" state. This means it is legal for the company to let you go for any reason they choose. You might very well find yourself let go, you've been there a very short time, there has been much drama, and they are now questioning your job performance, which sounds like the opening they may need to very legally walk you out of the company. It's not fair, but it is legal and you would have no discrimination or harassment case against the company even if it does happen. So be proactive, forget agonizing about how terribly you've been treated, and start seeking a better work situation.