There are federal and state laws that prohibit employment discrimination. Businesses hiring new workers, preparing for large-scale staffing reductions or looking to fill a vacancy in the upper echelons of the company should consider workers based on their job history, education, skills and seniority, not based on characteristics they cannot change, such as their race, age and sex.
Sex discrimination remains a major issue at modern businesses, especially when looking at executive roles. At many organizations, the glass ceiling is still intact. A company’s refusal to hire or promote female workers to those most authoritative roles could be a sign of discrimination.
Promotion discrimination causes the glass ceiling
For decades, people have used the phrase “glass ceiling” to refer to the inability of certain workers to move into the most coveted and powerful positions within an organization. Specifically, women who have years of experience and adequate credentials may find that their employers promote someone with less experience or fewer successful projects within the company over them.
Especially when businesses repeatedly deny advancement opportunities to qualified female applicants, there may be reason to question if discrimination based on sex contributed to the decision. When an organization’s C-suite is entirely populated by male professionals despite female workers with the experience and capability to fill those roles applying for those positions when vacancies arise, that is a red flag for potential discrimination.
Discriminatory promotion practices are as illegal as discriminatory pay and hiring practices. Professionals facing sex-based discrimination that limits their opportunities can potentially file lawsuits to assert their legal rights. Documenting a company’s conduct and discussing a worker’s particular situation with an employment lawyer can help frustrated workers hold their employers accountable for inappropriate and unlawful employment practices.