Here at Miletti Law®, the authoritative force in Employment and Labor Law today, we are a proud gang of the #UnusuallyMotivated Movement. In order to keep you, our unusually motivated® readers, #InTheKnow about issues that affect you and/or your businesses, we are committed to the continued creation of enlightening and educative content in a manner that only Miletti Law®. After all, how would you tell why we are unusually motivated? Usually, the content is featured as videos that are posted on our YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtvUryqkkMAJLwrLu2BBt6w and blogs that are published on our website WWW.MILETTILAW.COM.

This blog is Part III of the series on the anatomy of a disability discrimination claim. Without fear or favor, it’s within our best interest to stand for justice and be counted on the right! For this reason, we’ve come to the rescue of a large group of nurses who have been forced to take the jab despite having medically-recognized disabilities (including high-risk pregnancies) and others against their religious convictions. In Part I & II of this series, we’ve provided you with an anatomies of a disability discrimination claims and disability discrimination cases, respectively. In response to the influx of questions from nurses regarding what to do in preparation for these COVID-19 vaccine mandates, we decided to shift our focus for a while and provide them with the five key steps that everyone must take to prepare for their lawsuits and defend themselves against their employer. We invite you to review our previous video through https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUPNOUH2Z3o.

In our video titled “The Anatomy Of A Disability Discrimination Case, Part III” and from which this blog has been created, we endeavor to provide you with a checklist of what you should be looking for and what you should have to assess and analyze your disability discrimination case. Think of the checklist as an assessment tool that would help you assess how strong or weak you case is.

As a preliminary matter, we’d like to make it clear that the video does not provide you with specifics regarding the law. Rather, the aim is to provide you, based on the guidance of the #MostJackedAttorneyNYC, Vinny Miletti, with a checklist of things you should have in hand and mind as a layperson so that you can prepare and have a solid disability discrimination case. What questions should you ask yourself? What is the best way to approach arising legal matters? Do I have a viable case or not? These include the questions the checklist will help to answer.

Before we dig into the checklist, we highly encourage you to subscribe to our YouTube Channel and sign up for our Newsletter so that you’ll be notified whenever we post a new video or blog. Our channel and videos have been shut down occasionally because we’ve made a lot of influential “noise” of late. If we’re connected, we’ll be united and when United, We Stand, but Divided We Fall.

Without further ado, let’s now hammer on this checklist.

Group 1. Leadership & Accountability.

Here, you need to ask yourself whether your organization’s leadership has an established culture of respect and accountability for responding to issues that involve disability discrimination. You need to have a grasp on what steps are taken and what your organization does not tolerate when it comes to workplace discrimination. Further, you also need to ask yourself whether the leadership has invested in sufficient resources (in terms of time & money) for preventing and fighting against discrimination. You should also have information as to whether the leadership has assessed the risk factors of discrimination in the organization. This includes investigating whether there are policies set to prevent discrimination and the extent to which they are implemented. Other questions include how often this policy is communicated, whether it’s written in a language that employees clearly understand, and if the organization has a reporting system and how it works. In addition, you need to have information about who assumes accountability for particular acts of discrimination against employees or a culture that does not promote workplace fairness and non-discrimination. Don’t forget to ask how often the organization conducts training for managers, HR (h personnel, and supervisors. This includes assessing how regular workplace sensitivity training, replaceability training, and bystander intervention training are conducted.

Group 2. Anti-Discrimination Policies.

We’ve mentioned, in our past videos and blogs, that most employers have created their own anti-discrimination policies, especially following the pressure and tension created by the #MeToo Movement. Sometimes, anti-discrimination policies are incorporated as part of employees’ handbook. Thus, you should look into your organization’s anti-discrimination policy to ascertain that it is written in an easy-to-understand manner, it’s unequivocal, and whether clauses that state, in black & white, that the organization is a non-discriminatory employer.

Group 3. Discrimination Reporting System & Investigation.

Next, you should check whether the organization has a discrimination reporting system in place and how investigations regarding discrimination complaints are conducted. Ask yourself about the existing reporting system, to whom discriminatory acts are reported to, and what structure or method is used to investigate, respond to, and act on discrimination complaints. In addition, it’s crucial to confirm whether the organization has a non-retaliation policy stating that you cannot be retaliated against for reporting discriminatory practices. However, while the non-retaliation statement should be written in a specific language that is spoken and understood by employees, discrimination complaints should be authentic and legitimate.

Group 4. Compliance Training.

In our past blogs and videos, we’ve emphasized on the importance of every employer being compliant with the law. Compliance is vital, especially in a state like New York where the law is very strict when it comes to training on sexual harassment and discrimination. In this case, you need to check whether training is conducted in terms of several aspects.

  • The training structure – you need to check whether its supported, reinforced on a regular basis, provided to all employees, done by qualified individuals, and modified as necessary when laws change;
  • The content of the training – you’d want to know whether it outlines what is considered an illegal practice and what is now, whether it is tailored to the specific workforce and company, if it explains the consequences of discriminating others, and to whom employees should take their discrimination complaints to.
  • How helpful the content is – it’s also important to check whether the training has a positive impact on the employees or not. You’d also want to ask yourself whether it explains how to act when a discrimination incident occurs, it elaborates to whom employees should take their complaints to, and what channels of communication should be used. Again, it should be written in a specific language that is spoken and understood by employees.

Group 5. Odds & Ends, Other Considerations.

Finally, you want to clearly identify and narrate the order and timetable of events, which will reinforce your narrative against that of the employer. You need to explains things like when you started working for the organization, how long you’ve been working there, whether you disclosed the disability, the date you were prompted to disclose the disability versus the day you really disclosed it, what happened after you did so, whether you got an adverse reaction, when, and what it was. Additionally, it’s crucial to explain the specific conversations that took place between you and your employer, supervisor, manager, or HR personnel. Show any emails you exchanged between any of these individuals and any videos, audios, or pictures you took. Explain and show how other employees who were similarly situated received better treatment as compared to you. Finally, you could also explore other issues including whether you were retaliated against for making discrimination complaints.

The idea is to get as many bites of the apple as possible while you stand up for how best you ought to have been treated and, eventually, have a solid and viable case.

We invite you to review our video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c19_Wsted1w

Stay tuned for the next installment and always be #UnusuallyMotivated. In the interim, reach out to us with questions or comments at the Contact Us page!

Always rising above the bar,

Isaac T.,

Legal Writer & Author.