If you’ve been discriminated against at work for your race, gender, age, sexual preferences, religious or political views, disability, or any other personal trait, it can raise a lot of frustration, insecurity, and other difficult feelings.
Here are a few tips to help you cope with the situation.
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Review the Policy
First of all, make sure you have a clear idea of your company’s policies surrounding issues like this. There should be a clear policy against hate speech and other forms of discrimination, and even a procedure for how they should be handled.
If you need assistance with the legal side of things, getting in touch with a local discrimination attorney can be a great help.
Record Any Evidence
It’s important that you take down any evidence you might have of the discrimination you’re facing. This could be anything from text messages to a witness’s account of what happened.
If you don’t have any physical evidence, you should diarise the events, the time and place they occurred and as many details as possible.
Report the Incidents
If you are being harassed or discriminated against in any way at work, you need to report the incident to your employer (or to your HR department).
Reporting the incident is the most important step to take, and it should be done in a formal and professional manner, in order for it to be handled correctly. Make sure that you show everyone involved that you are serious about the matter.
Try to Think Clearly
When facing an upsetting or stressful situation, it can be difficult to think clearly and respond professionally. When these circumstances arise, we need to be able to clear our minds and think rationally despite the emotional response we may be feeling.
In a professional context, it’s important to be rational and not let our emotions get the better of us.
Don’t Let it Define You
On an emotional level, you need to remind yourself that another person’s views or comments about you do not define you as a person.
In the workplace, you should be considered only in terms of your work ethic and what you bring to the company. No personal factors should impact how you are viewed or treated.
Seek Professional Help
Facing discrimination in your workplace, or anywhere for that matter, can cause serious anxiety and even depression in some individuals.
If you find that you’re struggling to overcome what happened to you, reach out to a professional for help. Therapy and counselling are great methods of processing a negative experience and figuring out how to move past it.
Get Actively Involved
Finally, a good step to take is to get actively involved in the fight against discrimination. Have a conversation with your employer about your experience and how it made you feel and offer them some suggestions on how discrimination can be handled and avoided in their company in the future.
You might look into changing policies or simply raising awareness amongst your co-workers.
