Marital Status Discrimination Lawyers in Long Island, NY

New York State Law Prohibits Marital Status Discrimination in Employment

Marital status discrimination occurs when an employee or job applicant is treated differently based on their marriage, or lack thereof. There is no federal labor law that prevents marital status discrimination. Indeed, in some states, employees have no protection against discrimination on the basis of marital status. Fortunately, New York provides state-level legal protections. Under New York law (N.Y. Human Rights Law § 296.1), workers are entitled to equal opportunity as a civil right and they cannot be discriminated against because of “age, race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, military status, sex, marital status, or disability.” Here is how marital status discrimination typically manifests itself in the workplace:

• Married People Can Face Discrimination: In some cases, employees face marital status discrimination because of the fact that they are married. Most often, this type of marital status discrimination happens because an employer is “worried” that a worker’s family and personal obligations will distract them from their job. In New York, companies and organizations are not allowed to use marriage to filter out certain employees. An employer cannot refuse to hire qualified employees simply because they are married. If you suffered marital status discrimination in Long Island due to your marriage, call a New York employment lawyer for help.
• Unmarried People Can Face Discrimination: Unmarried people also face marital status discrimination in the workplace. Overwhelmingly, this type of marital status discrimination falls on single mothers. An employee may refuse to offer a job position to an applicant simply because she is a single mother. In New York, this is strictly prohibited. That an employee is unmarried—whether male, female, parent, or non-parent cannot be used against them to deny equal employment opportunities. If you were treated unfavorably simply because you are not married, an experienced Long Island marital status discrimination attorney will protect your rights.

Everyone is protected under New York’s anti-marital status discrimination statute. Whether you are married or unmarried, an employer should not use that as a justification to deny you full and equal employment opportunities. As marital status discrimination takes a wide range of different forms, it is crucial that every case is carefully investigated by an experienced attorney. If you have any specific questions about what happened to you in the workplace, please contact our Long Island marital status discrimination lawyers for immediate assistance.