We’re often hired to sue an employer for discrimination over a hiring or promotion decision. This is where lots of discrimination occurs. Many superior employees are denied a job opportunity, or a chance to promote upwards, because of their race, gender, age, disability or a similar category.
We’ve had great victories for our clients against employers who illegally manipulate hiring and promotion processes. If you’ve been denied a job, or a promotion where you work, and you feel that discrimination played a role, call us at (800) 663-7999. Consultations are free. We may be able to help in situations going back as much as four years.
And if you don’t know who got the job, don’t worry. We can find that out for you.
Here are some things to think about before we talk. If you answer “Yes” to one or more questions, you might have a valuable claim:
- Did your employer deviate from normal hiring procedures? Did it suddenly change the way it is going to fill the position?
- Have the explanations for choosing the winner changed since it was first announced? Does it seem to keep changing?
- Did your employer use factors not mentioned in the advertisements?
- Were there any stray comments made about the candidate that caught your attention?
- Did the winner lack the minimum qualifications? Did the hiring panel count things that really shouldn’t have counted?
- Did your employer use “soft” criteria (“has strong presence;” “not suited;” “great attitude;” “desire to get ahead”)?
- How do you compare in a head-to-head qualifications comparison?
- Did your employer publish clear, specific criteria ahead of time about what qualifications were needed?
- Do the explanations for selection of the winner strike you as just ridiculous?
- Was the hiring process cancelled in the past? Sometimes when an employer wants to avoid hiring you, they’ll cancel the hiring process if it appears you are the best-qualified person. Then they’ll wait and start it over again a few weeks or months later.
- Did your company simply announce someone is getting the new spot, without advertising or interviewing? So that you never had a chance to compete?
- Are the criteria used by the employer designed to fit the one person they want to promote? So that no one else can qualify?
- Did your employer change the qualifications so a favored person would qualify?
- Is the employer avoiding qualifications you have that should be considered?
- Did your employer ignore the fact that you’ve been doing the job informally already?
- Is the documentation of the hiring process poor or nonexistent?
- Did the employer change the hiring rules halfway through? Allow others to apply after the deadline? Add more rounds of interviews than they announced? Drop or add criteria?
- What do other people who’ve been promoted look like? All of the same race, gender, or age?
- Did you decide not to apply because your boss made comments discouraging you from doing so?
- Before the position was advertised, did supervisors make sure the person who eventually won got special assignments or training that gave them an advantage? While denying others the same training or opportunities to improve chances for promotion?
- Was the winner first put into the position on an “interim” basis? To give them a better chance at being chosen?
- At the time the company announced who was going to be interviewed, were you pregnant? Disabled? Had you recently used medical leave or had a workers’ comp claim?
- Was the hiring panel diverse? Or all people of the same race, age, gender?
- Did your employer use a scoring system to rank candidates for interview or selection? What kind of system was it?
- Is the winner someone who obviously wouldn’t have been chosen if your employer was actually looking for the most-qualified person?
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Jim Garrity, Esq. - Employee Rights Lawyer 
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