A quarter of all Americans have experienced workplace discrimination and more than three-quarters believe most or all employers practice some form of discrimination in hiring or promoting workers, a poll said.
The LEXIS/National Law Journal poll, released Sunday, found that 51 percent of respondents believed that "all or most" employers are guilty of discriminatory practices, and many more employees are willing to take legal action against employment discrimination than in the past.Seventy-eight percent of the respondents, the poll found, believe some, most or all "employers practice some form of discrimination in their hiring or promotion practices," despite official equal opportunity policies.
The random telephone survey of 803 adult Americans focused on employment discrimination and perceptions of job issues, ranging from drug testing and privacy in the workplace to family matters.
The poll found that 25 percent of respondents said they have experienced discrimination on the job. But almost half of those took no legal action, while the other half responded most frequently by complaining to their employers (28 percent) or quitting their jobs (14 percent).
Only 2 percent of the respondents either consulted or hired a lawyer or filed a lawsuit, while 10 percent said they had complained to state and federal agencies.
But 62 percent of the respondents said they would be more willing to take legal action to fight discrimination than they would have been five years ago, although 55 percent said they thought the legal system might not fairly resolve their cases.
Fifty-three percent said they would give up the right to a court trial in favor of arbitration over a discrimination dispute.
Among the other findings of the poll:
-58 percent of respondents supported affirmative action measures to relieve past discrimination against women and minorities in all or some cases.
-Nearly one-third said they would "take legal or administrative action, such as filing a lawsuit or grievance" to enforce no-smoking policies if their employer failed to police such measures.
-37 percent said people with AIDS should not be restricted from certain jobs, but 24 percent said they should be excluded from health care occupations.