Workplace Discrimination vs. Harassment: What’s the Difference?
February 1, 2025
Your employer’s conduct could affect numerous aspects of your employer. Both federal and state laws prohibit discrimination on the job. Discrimination can include actions that relate to hiring, firing, promotions, and job benefits. Harassment is also a form of illegal discrimination that can harm your work experience. If you have been the victim of discrimination or harassment, you may be able to file a lawsuit against your employer.
Both harassment and discrimination occur on your membership in a protected class. Here, you could be harassed or discriminated against based on:
- Race
- Gender
- Sex
- Religion
- Ethnicity
- National origin
- Disability
Conduct That Can Be Considered Discrimination
Discrimination means that the employer is taking some type of adverse action against you. An adverse action can include several things, including:
- Failure to hire you for a position
- Terminating you from your job
- Denying you a promotion that you are due
- Giving you a worse performance review than others who are doing the same quality of work
- Denying a job benefit to you that others receive
In most cases, you would not have direct evidence that you were discriminated against on the job. Your employer is never going to admit directly that they acted with discriminatory intent. In most cases, you are relying on circumstantial evidence to build your case. It is possible to win a discrimination case based on this evidence, even when you need not have direct proof of intent.
What Is Harassment on the Job?
Harassment is a form of workplace discrimination, but it affects your working environment and ability to do your job. Discrimination would involve actions that your employer takes that affect your job, as opposed to direct conduct aimed at you or which happens in your presence. Here, you are being singled out because of your membership in a protected class, and you are treated differently. Harassment can be intimidation and offensive jokes about your ethnicity or race.
It is possible to file a lawsuit over harassment based on one incident if it is severe enough. In addition, you could also file a lawsuit based on a hostile work environment if you are subject to pervasive conduct on the job that makes it difficult for you to perform your work effectively.
It could also include sexual harassment, which takes on the following forms:
- Quid Pro Quo: Someone demands sexual favors in return for either taking an action or not taking an action, such as firing an employee.
- Verbal Sexual Harassment: The employee is subject to crude remarks directed at them or conduct that happens in their presence.
- Unwanted Touching: A worker may be touched without their consent or have their physical path blocked by someone.
It could be easier to prove harassment since you may be able to obtain direct evidence of the conduct. You may not have to piece together a case from circumstantial evidence to prove your claim.
In both cases, you would need an employment lawyer’s help to build your case and file a lawsuit against your employer. Both discrimination and harassment lawsuits can be difficult cases, but you may be entitled to substantial financial compensation if you win in court or reach a settlement agreement. You may have limited time to file a lawsuit, so you should contact an employment lawyer today.
Contact the Cherry Hill Discrimination Lawyers at The Gold Law Firm P.C.
If you have a victim of wrongful conduct on the job that affects you or is directed at you, contact the Cherry Hill discrimination lawyers at The Gold Law Firm P.C. We can help you file a claim or lawsuit against your employer to get justice and accountability. You can schedule a free initial consultation with one of our lawyers by calling us today at 215-569-1999 or contacting us online. We have offices in Philadelphia and Pennsauken, New Jersey, and we serve clients in South Jersey, including Cherry Hill, Haddonfield, Marlton, Moorestown, and Mount Laurel.