Californians might believe that the entertainment industry is less likely to discriminate against workers based on their protected characteristics. However, a study reveals that workplace discrimination against diverse television workers is a pervasive problem.
Federal lawsuit addresses discrimination in tech
A California tech company is facing a lawsuit from the U.S. Department of Labor. According to the complaint, discrimination caused black, Asian and female employees at Oracle to lose $400 million in wages over four years. The federal department began investigating the company in 2014 and initially filed its claim in 2017. It says that the software company used two primary mechanisms that enforced discriminatory practices in the workplace. In the first place, it based the pay of workers newly hired on their previous salaries rather than market rates, skills or achievement. This then limited their ability to increase their salaries throughout their careers.
Nursing mothers face discrimination on the job
Breastfeeding discrimination can have severe health and financial consequences for nursing mothers in California and across the country. One recent study indicates that up to 66 percent of nursing mothers who faced discrimination in the workplace lost their jobs as a result. The health consequences were also often significant, causing serious infections, ongoing pain, lost milk supply and earlier weaning or formula feeding as a result of the workplace environment. Despite legislation designed to provide protection for nursing mothers on the job, many women continue to face a lack of accommodation and other forms of discrimination for breastfeeding at work.
Advocacy group to focus on sexual harassment in healthcare
California residents may have followed the allegations of sexual misconduct leveled against Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein in late 2017 and the #MeToo movement they gave rise to. In January 2018, a group of entertainment industry figures including prominent writers and actors founded a group called Time's Up to address gender-based workplace discrimination. The organization also funds litigation filed against employers by workers who have been discriminated against or harassed due to their gender.
