There are countless stories of sexism in the workplace, from being passed up for a promotion to being demeaned by the opposite sex. Discrimination based on the gender of a person is illegal and should not be seen as “part of the culture”. All employees should be treated fairly and judged on the quality of their work. Sadly, discrimination is rampant in the workplace with no site of getting better even with revolutionary movements and calls or action. That is why many turn to the Los Angeles discrimination Lawyer at The Kaufman Law firm. With over 20 years of fighting for employee rights, Matthew Kaufman has the experience you need to fight discriminatory treatment in the workplace.
150 Los Angeles Riot Games employees walked out of work to protest the company’s arbitration stance and sexist work culture. Employees are protesting the forced arbitration policy that they have had to sign. Forced arbitration means that when an employee is being harassed or are involved in an internal dispute, they cannot seek legal action and are to handle the issues internally. This is a contingency of their employment, so without signing this agreement, they may not continue with their employment. Forced arbitration agreements are often used as a way of hiding any workplace disputes like sexual harassment from ever reaching the public and instead of keeping the information internally.
This particular walkout came after the controversial forced arbitration of two current employees. This comes shortly after five women filed a lawsuit against the company. By the two women being forced into arbitration, they cannot take their sexual harassment case to trial in Los Angeles. The walkout employees have stated that further action will be taken if their deadline of May 16th is not met. They are hoping to remove forced arbitration from the company and set a precedent for other companies to follow.
Riot Games has responded by being supportive of the walkout and informing managers to accommodate the employees participating. They have also stated that once the current litigation is over, new employees will have the option to opt-out of mandatory arbitration. They also plan to train new employees on how to have a harassment-free workplace. Employees are unhappy with this commitment. They want forced arbitration to end company-wide not just for new employees.
Although Riot Games is moving in the right direction, they can do more and should. We will stay watching to see what happens after the protesters’ deadline. We hope that Riot Games does the right thing. While this is only one company, there are many others with similar policies and some without any policies. If you are facing gender discrimination in Los Angeles or the surrounding areas you will need the help of a Los Angeles discrimination attorney. The Kaufman Law Firm is committed to protecting the rights of workers throughout Southern California. Schedule an initial consultation by calling (310) 981-3404 or by filling out our online contact form.