Black male workers have often come to me because they earn less than others on their job who do the same work but are a different race. If you are doing substantially the same job as others of a different race but are paid less, then you may with some exceptions have a claim for discrimination under the Diane B. Allen Equal Pay Act. I have successfully represented Black men and other minorities who suffered harassment and illegal wage and salary discrimination and was successful in recovering money for them.
You do not have to experience overt racial harassment to bring a race discrimination claim under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination.
You do not have to experience overt racial harassment to bring a race discrimination claim under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination. The Diane B. Allen Equal Pay Act has been incorporated into the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination. This Act awards trebles damages to a plaintiff who was illegally discriminated against in wages and salary because of race, ethnicity (and other protected classes). It is not necessary that you have the exact same job title. This Act makes it mandatory to not discriminate in pay if the workers are doing substantially similar job functions, even when the titles differ.
Black male workers suffer a larger wage disparity relative to White workers overall, however the pay gap based on sex is larger among White workers than the pay gap based on sex among Black workers according to government statistics.
The published the results for 2020 annual employment averages compared the median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers in different demographic groups. It comes as no surprise that for the 2020 annual averages, these statistics reveal a consistent disparity in pay between White and Black workers in their median usual weekly earnings. This is true for both full-time wage and salary workers.
What is surprising, when factoring in the selected characteristic of the sex of the workers for comparison, the study found that the cumulative disparity in pay based on sex is larger among White workers, than is the disparity in pay based on sex among Black workers.
According to the 2020 annual averages, Black or African American males who are full-time wage and salary workers earn $830 as their median usual weekly earnings. Black or African American females who are full-time wage and salary workers earn $764 as their median usual weekly earnings, i.e., the Black females earn 92% of the comparative Black male earnings.
White males who are full-time wage and salary workers earn $1,110 as their median usual weekly earnings. White females who are full-time wage and salary workers earn $905 as their median usual weekly earnings, i.e., the White females earn only 81% of the comparative White male earnings. The pay gap between the sexes is larger among White workers than the sex pay gap among Blacks and African American workers. Both female and male Black workers have a an overall negative wage and salary disparity relative to all other races with the exception of workers who are of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, according to the 2020 annual government averages.
Illegal disparity in pay without any harassment constitutes harm to you in all aspects of your life and family.
If You Are Thinking of Resigning
If you are thinking of resigning, you should contact this office immediately before you do so, to explore your options in the safest possible way for you. If you believe your employer is discriminating against you because you are a member of a protected class such as race, age, sex, disability etc., you should contact this office immediately. I am successful in filing lawsuits on behalf of workers who were discriminated against at work and in recovering money to compensate them.
If you think your employer is violating the Diane B. Allen Equal Pay Act or is discriminating against you, you should call this office today. I am an aggressive and compassionate employment law attorney who is experienced in successfully representing persons who were subjected to discrimination, harassment and retaliation in the workplace and/or were fired. If you have experienced discrimination at work, or if you reported it and no action was taken, if you are thinking of resigning, or think you will be fired, or have been fired, it is important that you consult with an attorney who is experienced in employment discrimination.
If you are being subjected to workplace discrimination, contact Hope A. Lang, Attorney at Law today for a free consultation.
Hope A. Lang, Attorney at Law serves clients throughout New Jersey, including Bergen, Middlesex, Essex, Hudson, Monmouth, Ocean, Union, Camden, Passaic, and Morris Counties with locations in southern, central, western and northern NJ to meet with clients.