Your Rights as a Worker

hero-1

As Philadelphia’s premier employment and discrimination lawyer, The Employment Law Firm of Pennsylvania is passionate about fighting for the rights of honest, hard workers in the city of Philadelphia and the great state of Pennsylvania. But what, exactly, are the rights of these workers? Here’s a breakdown of the most basic, overarching rights of all workers in the United States.

You have a right to be free from discrimination in the workplace.

Pennsylvania has at-will employment laws, meaning your employer can fire you at any time for any reason (or for no reason at all). However, If you’re a worker in the United States, you have the right to work in a place that’s free of discrimination based on race, sex, age, disability, or sexual orientation, and free of employment decisions that are based on those attributes. (We’ll cover each of these types of discrimination in depth in future blog posts.) Discriminatory biases that affect hiring, job promotions, assignment or reassignment, firing or termination are all considered forms of employment discrimination, if proven in a court of law.

Federal employment laws that protect workers from discrimination include the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), among others.

On the state and local level, the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act (PHRA) protects Pennsylvanians from discrimination based on race, color, religion, ancestry, age, or national origin, and the Philadelphia Anti-Employment Discrimination Ordinance prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity within the city of Philadelphia. (There are no federal or state laws that protect employees from these forms of discrimination).

These laws also protect employees from facing retaliation for reporting workplace discrimination and civil rights violations.

You have a right to be in a workplace free of safety hazards.

If you’re an employee working in the private sector in the United States, federal safety and health regulations protect you from exposing yourself to toxic substances and a dangerous workplace environment that could cause you personal injury or death.

These federal regulations are investigated and enforced the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), an agency of the United States Department of Labor (DOL) that oversees safety and health conditions in a large percentage of private industries, and approves state-led workplace health and safety plans. Any employer that is under the jurisdiction of OSHA is obligated to keep their workplace free of serious and widely recognizable hazards.

You have the right to be free from retaliation for holding your employer accountable.

You shouldn’t be punished for upholding standards of honesty, transparency, fair treatment, and legality in your workplace. As a worker of Pennsylvania, you are protected from punitive action, or “retaliation,” for reporting the wrongdoings of your employer; these protections are called whistleblower laws.

On the federal level, there are multiple laws that protect workers across a number of industries for reporting safety and health hazards, fraudulent activity, and law violations. On the state level, the Pennsylvania Whistleblower Law holds state-funded businesses accountable for whistleblower retaliation.

You have the right to fair wages for your work.

If you spend your time working, you should get paid for that work. However, employers sometimes attempt to cut corners that can cut dollars from your paycheck. This can come in the form of wage discrimination based on age, gender, or race, unpaid overtime, wage theft by way of illegal paycheck deductions or hour shorting, or by delaying or withholding your hard-earned pay altogether.

Federal and state laws protect Pennsylvania employees from wage theft and discrimination—all you need is an experienced employment and discrimination lawyer to help you receive the wages you deserve.

That’s where the Employment Law Firm of Pennsylvania can help. Led by seasoned employment lawyer Howard Trubman, the Employment Law Firm of Pennsylvania is experienced at taking on angry bosses and large corporations, and passionate about making your employment and discrimination law case as simple and stress-free as possible. If you believe you might be the victim of an employee rights violation, don’t hesitate—call us today!