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• Labor and Employment Law

Were you fired illegally?

Your employer will pay for it!

The Equal Employment Opportunity Act gives workers and job applicants legal protection against discrimination.

So what can (and should) be done when the employer breaks the law?

Tags

• Dismissal

• Equality

Adv. Orna Shmaryahu, in collaboration with Adv. Orna Shmaryahu

Wednesday, 12 June 2019, 09:16

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(Illustration: ShutterStock) (Photo: ShutterStock)

The Equal Employment Opportunity Act, enacted in 1988, replaced the Equal Employment Opportunity Act, 1981. The amended law prohibits employers from discriminating against employees or job seekers on the basis of sexual orientation, age, place of residence, parenting, outlook and a long list of other characteristics. The law actually guarantees all candidates and employees equal opportunities. Among other things, the law also refers to characteristics such as gender, personal status (whether the person is widowed, divorced, married or single), country of origin, nationality, religion and party affiliation.

In a perfect world, there may not have been any need to enshrine the prohibition on discrimination in law. In a perfect world, there was probably no need to set up a body in 2006 to enforce the provisions of the law - the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. But as we know, the world we live in is far from perfect. Many employers are familiar with the law but still prefer to act as they see fit and look for different ways to fire employees without bearing the consequences. The method of operation includes over-attachment to the exact provisions of the law, while carefully walking the fine line that separates the legal from the illegal.

example below will illustrate the usual course of action among employers.

AP has worked in the accounting department at a cosmetics company, fulfilling its role to the best of its ability and to the satisfaction of its employers.

Three years after starting her job, AP became pregnant, and as usual, went on maternity leave.

Upon returning to work, she discovered that most of the positions that were under her responsibility were officially transferred to her replacement during maternity leave.

Then, exactly 60 days later, AP was summoned to a hearing after which she was fired.

More on the same topic

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To the full article

It is strictly forbidden to fire an employee within 60 days of the end of maternity leave (Illustration: ShutterStock) (Photo: ShutterStock)

The dry law is often wet

according to the Equal Employment Opportunity Law, and it is strictly forbidden to fire an employee within 60 days of the end of maternity leave. On the face of it, the workplace did not act in violation of the law and therefore, was not expected to receive a penalty and was not supposed to compensate the worker. In practice, AP, who felt that she had been wronged, was not lazy and filed a lawsuit through me against her employer. She won the lawsuit and received compensation in the amount of NIS 40,000, and another NIS 10,000 to cover expenses.

Why did the court rule in favor of the employee? At trial, the fact arose that it was no coincidence that the invitation to the hearing came exactly 60 days after the end of maternity leave. Defendant argued in her defense that during the employee's leave such and other changes occurred in the scope of work in the department in which she was employed. The Tel Aviv Regional Labor Court addressed the allegations, but noted that the protection of the legislature is especially required in these cases, due to the inherent fear that the employer would prefer to dismiss the returning employee from maternity leave and instead hire another employee with a more "comfortable" personal situation.

if you have been fired from your job and discriminated against on any basis - sexual orientation, origin, religion, marital status or age - the right thing to do is to contact an employment law lawyer without delay. This way you will understand whether there is solid ground for the claim and whether you can receive compensation that may reach very significant amounts.

Naturally, dismissals are not always against the law and therefore it is not always possible to receive compensation. In order to understand what things are meant for, one must examine each case on its own merits and address a whole range of circumstances and data that vary from case to case.

* Adv. Orna Shmaryahu has been working in the field of labor law for over 18 years and represents employees and employers in all courts.

Tel. Contact: 077-9977542

The article was written in collaboration with the Zap Mishpati website

* The information presented in the article does not constitute legal advice or a substitute for it and does not constitute a recommendation for taking proceedings or avoiding proceedings.

Anyone who relies on the information in the article does so at his own risk.

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