Accent Discrimination In WA State
Under the Washington Law Against Discrimination, is it illegal for employers to discriminate against employees based upon foreign accents? Here's my point of view (NOTE: please read our DISCLAIMER before proceeding).
WASHINGTON LAW AGAINST DISCRIMINATION
Under the Washington Law Against Discrimination (WLAD), it is an unfair practice, with very few exceptions, for an employer to refuse to hire any person, to discharge or bar any person from employment, or to discriminate against any person in compensation or in other terms and conditions of employment because of age (40+); sex (including pregnancy); marital status; sexual orientation (including gender identity); race; color; creed; national origin; citizenship or immigration status; honorably discharged veteran or military status; HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C status; the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability; the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability; and state employee or health care whistleblower status.
It is also an unfair practice for an employer to retaliate against an employee because the employee complained about job discrimination or assisted with a job discrimination investigation or lawsuit.
In Washington, "[n]ational origin discrimination includes discrimination against an employee because he/she shares the linguistic characteristics of a national origin group." Xieng v. Peoples Nat. Bank of Washington, 63 Wn.App. 572, 578 (Wash.App. Div. I 1991), aff’d, 120 Wn.2d 112 (Wash. 1993) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted) (hyperlinks added). Thus, under the the Washington Law Against Discrimination, national origin discrimination includes discrimination based upon foreign accent.
THE NINTH CIRCUIT
Moreover, the Ninth Circuit has found that employers face a heavy burden in accent discrimination cases as they could easily "use an individual’s foreign accent as a pretext for national origin discrimination." See id. at 579 (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). Accordingly, courts tend to thoroughly scrutinize adverse employment decisions against employees based upon claims of inadequate oral communication skills. See id.
Ultimately, an employer’s adverse employment decision (e.g., promotion, termination, write-ups, etc.) "may be predicated upon an individual’s accent when--but only when--it interferes materially with job performance." Id. (quoting Fragante v. City and Cy. of Honolulu, 888 F.2d 591, 596 (9th Cir.1989), cert. denied, 494 U.S. 1081, 110 S.Ct. 1811, 108 L.Ed.2d 942 (1990)). Otherwise, the employer may be facing liability under the Washington Law Against Discrimination for national origin discrimination based upon foreign accent.
–gw
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If you would like to learn more, then consider contacting an experienced Washington State Employment Discrimination Attorney as soon as possible to discuss your case. Please note: the information contained in this article is not offered as legal advice and will not form an attorney-client relationship with either this author or Williams Law Group, PS; please see our DISCLAIMER.
