Should I complain to my employer or consult a lawyer first, regardng a racist remark by a colleague?

swissgirl

you should tell your employer.

T J

You could tell your lawyer, but they will tell you to notify your employer. You employer should be notified and have an opportunity to resolve the situation, otherwise they won't know about it and you won't be able to do anything about it.

That said, talk to your employer and document (make notes or something) about what you said to them, when you said it, and what their response was, and (later) what happened afterwards. If it wasn't resolved, you can take further steps (talk to Human Resources or your lawyer), but you will have at least notified your employer and documented that you did so and when.

cc_of_0z

Complain to your employer first and see what they do. Take it up with a Lawyer if you can't get any action done there.

leysarob

Your first obligation was to remain cool and politely but firmly tell the co-worker his words were not acceptable.

Getting a lawyer after one incident is a waste of time and money. There must be continuous harrassment, not a single incident.

If the co-worker repeats his poor choice of words -- then tell the employer. If the co-worker continues and the employer does nothing, that's when you get an attorney.

bernie1701

Tell your employer, but understand that since it was off duty and after work hours there's not a lot that can be done. The employer's responsibility ends when you are not at work. Because it was said when you were "hanging out" at night, the person will get away with it. However notifying your employer will help if something is said at work.

demadog

You need to put your employer on notice and give them an opportunity to address the situation. Consult a lawyer if the remarks continue.

Mel

Talk to the employer ASAP. Any lawyer will want to see that there is a record of you having made a complaint to your manager and/or HR. Document to whom you spoke, when you did so, and what was said.

If the remark was directed at you, you may also want to consider filing a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (www.eeoc.gov.) There are guidelines on their web site with respect to waht constitutes discrimination - for example, was the person who made the remark your boss or otherwise in a decision-making capacity with respect to your employment (they oversee your payroll, for example?)

Once you've done those things, now you are ready to consult a lawyer if the company does not take appropriate action to discipline the offender. If it was a one-time offense, a lawyer isn't going to get anything for you anyway, so see what the company can do first. If the action continues and/or if the company doesn't take action, you will have a better chance to win a suit.

Good luck.

john c

If there were clients present then you were fraternizing and that was not professional. The senior staff member present already should have filed a report with your steering committee regarding the company image and that is sufficient.

If it was employees only, it was socializing and your daytime affiliation had nothing to do with your off hours encounter. By meeting with them casually, you implied that an equally casual behavior was also acceptable.

This is a perfect example of why it is when you go to work, you go to work and when you get off, you go home. Good Luck.

danielrain

i suggest you read a good book about bullying at work to learn how to deal with these sorts of problems.....and make sure your bahaviour is not inappropriate to make other people to react in a bad way towards you.....sometimes people get offended but because they can not tell you exactly why they start bullying you instead

carjug

I suspect heshe is hazing you to see what you are made of. Agressive behavior on your part might help.
Don't bother your boss.

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