Racism and Your Rights

For almost three years, Osei Agyemang, was mocked and subjected to racist taunts. According to a recent article in the Daily News, the native of Ghana, was asked if he wanted a banana, told his accent was "gibberish," called a "monkey" and "gorilla," and told to go back to his "cage." It sounds like the kind of bullying that happens in a schoolyard playground, right? While it's hard to believe, this blatant racism took place at none other than New York University, one of the country's top institutions of higher learning where Agyemang worked as a mailroom employee at the Bobst Library. After years of withstanding his bosses' jeers and taunts, Agyemang decided he had had enough and took legal action. In 2010, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed suit and last month, NYU paid Agyemang $210,000 to resolve the discrimination charges. A university spokesman told the Daily News that Agyemang's boss no longer was employed by NYU and called the behavior "totally at odds with the spirit of diversity and tolerance for which NYU is rightly known." But a lawyer for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), who represented Agyemang, told the paper the "suit shows that ugly harassment and retaliation can happen anywhere, even at a prestigious university." If you've suffered discrimination at the hands of your employer (whether you work for an Ivy-League school or a restaurant in Chinatown), you have legal rights. Under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), employers with 4 to 14 employers are prohibited from discriminating against employees on account of their national origin. Employers with 4 or more employees are banned from discriminating because of someone's citizenship status or discriminating when they verify employment eligibility (and it's illegal for these employers to retaliate against employees who exercise their rights under IRCA). There also are laws prohibiting discrimination in the workplace based on sex, race, age, religion or disability. Laws even forbid an employer from discriminating based on someone's genetic makeup! And this doesn't just extend to monetary discrimination. According to the EEOC's website, it's illegal to harass an employee based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, genetic discrimination or age (40 or older). So what should you do if you think you've been the victim of workplace discrimination? To file a charge, go to your local EEOC officer or any of the agency's 53 field offices. Don't delay. For the most part, employees have 180 days to file a charge. In certain instances, the filing deadline is extended to 300 days. If you are unsure about the deadline in your particular case, consult the EEOC or an attorney. You can file in person or by mail (online applications aren't accepted). If you go in person, make sure to take any relevant documentation. You can also bring along a friend or family member to the meeting. Or an attorney (although it's not necessary to retain a lawyer to file a charge). If you file by mail, provide your name and contact information (including address and phone number), as well as the name, address and telephone number of the employer (or employment agency or union) you want to file your charge against. Also include the number of employees (if known), a short summary of the events you think were discriminatory, when the events occurred, why you think you were discriminated against (age, national origin, etc). And make sure to sign the letter. If you don't sign, the EEOC doesn't have the power to take action. You can't file a charge by phone, but you can get the ball rolling. Call 1-800-669-4000 to submit basic information, and a representative from your local field office will follow-up with you. For more information, check out eeoc.gov/employees or get in touch with a lawyer who can help you with the process.