The options that employees have when their rights are violated

There are several laws in place to protect the civil rights of employees. For example, workers cannot be overlooked for promotion because of their gender, race or religion. When the protected rights of Maryland workers are violated, they have a few options to initiate an employment dispute.

One of these options is informal negotiations between the employee and employer, rather than going through a court battle. The optimum result is that the employer consents to compensate the worker, while the employee consents to dismiss the right to take legal action. However, this is not always the result.

When informal negotiations do not work in an employment dispute, the worker has the option to submit a complaint to the state or federal government. This allows the government to launch an investigation into the violation of the employee’s civil rights. Depending on what the investigation uncovers, the government could take further legal measures on the worker’s behalf.

Most of the time, an employee whose rights have been violated has the option to file a private lawsuit against the offender. Whether the action is filed in state or federal court depends on the circumstances surrounding the worker’s case. The complaint states the facts of the civil rights violation and the allegations against the offender to demonstrate that the offender is liable for any harm that the employee suffered.

While these are the general options available to employees when their civil rights are violated, some employment disputes require the employees to involve the state or federal government. The government agency that is involved may depend on the circumstances as well. Employees unsure as to whether their cases require government involvement may speak with an attorney.

Attorney Rebekah Damen Lusk

Attorney Rebekah LuskRebekah Damen Lusk is the Owner at Lusk Law, LLC. Rebekah brings personal experiences as a small business owner, real estate investor and landlord to the task of practicing law and working with clients. Her practice includes civil litigation, business, employment, landlord/tenant, real estate, family, equine and animal law. [ Attorney Bio ]

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