Discrimination is a serious problem that many people continue to face in today’s world. Sadly, many people who experience discrimination encounter it in the workplace. Victims of workplace discrimination can end suffering from various physical and emotional ailments.
Knowing what workplace discrimination looks like and understanding its impacts is crucial to helping stop it. To help people out, we’ve considered some of the causes and effects of this problem.
Common Types Of Workplace Discrimination
Workplace discrimination occurs when employees are mistreated or singled out due to their protected characteristics. Acts of discrimination are sometimes committed by a victims’ colleagues. Other times, these may be committed by their employers.
Employees often experience discrimination based on their:
- Abilities
- Age
- Gender identity
- Genetic information
- National origin
- Pregnancy status
- Race
- Religious beliefs
- Sexual orientation
- Skin color
The Effects Of Workplace Discrimination On Employees
One of the most common ways in which discrimination affects employees is through the use of sick or personal days. In order to escape the discrimination, employees might rack up their sick days and avoid reporting to work. Frequent workplace absences can cause employees to quickly fall behind on their work, thus leading to stress and nervousness about deadlines and completing projects.
Employees who are the victim of discrimination at work might also have trouble interacting with their colleagues, even those who are not discriminating against them. They may be unable to take part in casual conversation or look co-workers in the eye.
Victims of workplace discrimination often deal with emotional issues. They might begin to doubt themselves or wonder why they work where they work. Their stress and anxiety levels could become so high that they need to take prescription medication. High stress and anxiety levels can also lead to physical issues with overall health and wellbeing.
Workplace discrimination is illegal, yet many employees still fall victim to it. Even those who don’t experience discrimination directly might find themselves needing to stick up for their colleagues. Discrimination affects more than just the victim so be sure to report it immediately.
