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Employment Discrimination

Employment Pamphlet

What is Employment Discrimination?

Employment discrimination occurs when an employee or future employee is not treated fairly, or not given the same opportunities as other employees, based on a person's non-job related demographic characteristics.

Examples of Employment Discrimination

• Compensation: Paying an employee less than they would pay another employee who does the same job.
• Failure to Hire
• Failure to Promote: Denying opportunities for advancement
• Harassment
• Hostile Work Environment: Continuous actions and comments based on a protected characteristic that creates an uncomfortable and hostile workplace.
• Job Assignment: Assigning someone the worst job.
• Quid Pro Quo: Conditioning employment or promotion on sexual favors.
• Failure to provide Reasonable Accommodations to a person with a disability despite the fact that it would not cause undue hardship on an employer.
• Termination of a Job

Who is Exempt?

The following are exempt from the Des Moines Human Rights Municipal Code in the area of Employment Discrimination:

1. An employer who regularly employs fewer than four individuals. Individuals who are members of the employer's family are not counted as employees.
2. Any authentic religious institution with respect to any qualifications for employment based on religion or sexual orientation when such qualifications are related to any authentic religious purpose.
3. The employment of individuals who work within the home of the employer, if the employer or members of the employer's family reside there during the time of employment.
4. The employment of individuals that render personal service to the employer or members of the employer's family.

Disability Rights in Employment

Qualified persons with physical or mental disabilities:

• May not be refused an application interview or employment because of their disability.
• May not be fired or let go because of their disability.
• Do have the right to a reasonable accommodation which would allow them to perform the essential functions of their position.

Request for a Reasonable Accommodation

Whether or not a suggested accommodation is "reasonable" will depend on factors such as cost, availability, necessity and whether a less expensive or more convenient accommodation is available.

An accommodation is not reasonable if it endangers any employee's health or safety, a bona fide occupational exemption exists, or create an extraordinary financial hardship on the employer.

• Employers:

• have an affirmative duty to sit down with the employee and discuss what, if any, accommodation is needed, if the employer knew or should have known the employee is disabled; and
• have an affirmative duty to make a reasonable accommodation, required by a person with a disability, to perform the essential job functions.

• Employees:

• have a duty to notify the employer they need an accommodation and tell the employer what modifications are needed to perform the job.

Examples of Reasonable Accommodations

• Make all application processes accessible to persons with disabilities
• Make existing facilities used by employees readily accessible and usable by employees with disabilities
• Restructuring the job, offering part-time or modified work schedule
• Reassigning the employee to vacant positions that they are qualified to hold
• Acquiring or modifying equipment or devices; adjusting or modifying examinations or training materials or policies as appropriate.
• Providing qualified readers or interpreters

Pregnancy and Maternity Leave

The Des Moines Ordinance prohibits an employer from discriminating against you because you are female. Therefore an employer cannot refuse to hire you because he or she assumes that a pregnant female will be an unreliable employee once she becomes a mother.

• Hiring - An employer can not refuse to hire a pregnant woman because of her pregnancy, or because of a pregnancy condition.
• Employers - Must hold open a job for a pregnancy related absence the same length of time jobs are held open for employers on sick or disability leave.
• An employer may not single out pregnancy related conditions for special procedures to determine an employees ability to work.
• If an employee is temporarily unable to perform her job due to pregnancy, the employer must treat her the same as any other temporarily disabled employee.