Have I been discriminated against ?

Question

I can't help but feel discriminated against and violated because of my gender. A criminal history and my experience was discussed prior to me being hired. I was given a desk, a cell phone, business cards, company credit card, an email account, access to membership logins, upgraded my laptop, I was told how well I was going to do in this job (by both owners) and I was introduced to three of their major clients. I was hired and actively working. The day of the incident, November 16, 2007 the owner and maint. supervisor and I came back from a meeting. I found out that Mrs. Owner unfairly invaded my privacy by performing exhaustive searches of public records. She found out I use to be an ex topless entertainer over 7 years ago and went around the office questioning people and exposed this private information to them w/o my consent. After a questioning session on Fri., Mrs.Owner questioned my marriage, sterotyped me & said she had to go pray about it. Then 2 Mondays later I was let go.

Some of you are missing the point here. It is obvious that some people do not know there are legal limitations to running a background check. I did my homework! My back ground was checked and cleared prior to me being hired. This is a personal issue, she thought her husband and the supervisor knew and was keeping a secret. In fact, the day she questioned everyone, there is another girl who admits to have done the same thing in the past and she is still employed there. I have had 2 other jobs since then that delt with the public, the woman didn't even bother to call any of my past employers. I might have been a stripper in the past, but I'm not a dumb woman by any means. She told me she was going to pray about it and based her decision on her prayer outcome, how is that not wrong? Keep your moral views out of my answers, I'm looking for black and white not women who hate strippers. So it's okay if someone told your secret to the office staff?

Answer 1

From what you have said, your employer did nothing illegal. Although it wasn't the nicest thing in the world either. Many people have done things in their past that they are not proud of, and many people change and move on with their life in a more positive direction. Unfortunately, things like being a stripper stick with you for a long time. You just have to learn to let it go. If she was truly concerned about her business, she should have discussed it with you privately and let it go at that. If you were good at your job, which helps her business, then any reasonable person would have let you run with the ball. My advise is maybe next time tell your future employer privately what you used to do and inform them that it was not something you are proud of and that you have moved on. Honesty is much more appreciated up front and most smart people look past things like that if you have shown you are mature and take your job seriously. Good luck in the future.

Answer 2

The issue seems to be that the company worried that your “immoral” past could be a poor reflection on them. (I don’t personally have a problem with the industry, but I realize others could.) They’re probably thinking of the worst case scenario where you go to meet with a big shot client and he recognizes you from a past experience. Like it or not, exotic dancers aren’t held in the highest regard. If anything, I’d say the perceptions are almost entirely negative.

As a non-lawyer, it doesn’t sound like a gender discrimination issue unless you can prove they allowed a former male stripper to continue working there after they learned of his past.

Answer 3

They didn't fire you because you're female, they fired you because you were a stripper. That's not discrimintation, and you don't have legal recourse. You'd have a very hard time convincing the EEOC that they fired you just for being female, when they obviously knew that much when they hired you!

An employer doing a background check is NOT unfairly invading your privacy. And it wasn't very professional of her to go around the office talking about this, but wasn't illegal.

That said, I don't think it was reasonable to fire you over this - but that's not a legal issue.

Good luck.

Answer 4

Being a stripper, currently or in the past, is not a protected characteristic by law, therefore you have no legal standing.

It may be your former employer reacted strongly to your past, but she is well within her legal rights as an employer to share the information about your past and to fire you. Your particular past employment is not protected by law.

Answer 5

The only thing that they really did wrong was disclosing this information to other employees. That type of behavior is very unprofessional, but I'm not sure if it has any legal grounds.

Answer 6

Kenia,
go out today and apply in a dozen places for work.
given the info u said , u might have a chance =2 a ice cube in hades. seriously ,
don't waste ur time life money on this . get a job and move on.
'invade my privacy ---- searches of public records' isn't invasion any more.
any one can do it for fun.
when u work for some one - it is at mutual discertion. agin, pick urself up and move on.
to better things palces.

Answer 7

Sorry, it wasn't legal discrimination.

If they don't want an ex-stripper working in their place of business, especially if they are religious and don't want people who have engaged in that behavior working for them, then they had every legal right to let you go.

They didn't invade your privacy. Stripping is a form of employment. You didn't disclose all of your former employment.

Sorry, you don't have any legal grounds to do anything. You weren't discriminated against because of your gender, the owner just didn't want a former stripper working for her...big difference.

When you make those kinds of choices in life, they can come back to haunt you.

Answer 8

yes, you have been discriminated, if that is true and she didn't have your consent than she can't fire you for that.