California Discrimination & Harassment Lawyer

It is unlawful for employers to discriminate or harass their employees on account of the employees’ protected status or characteristics, such as their race, ethnicity, gender, sex, sexual orientation, disability, or any other characteristics that are protected by law.

Although similar in nature, discrimination in the workplace is different from harassment in the workplace.

Discrimination and Harassment Must Be Based on a Protected Status

Both discrimination and harassment claims must be based on a protected status. Under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”), an employee cannot be discriminated against or harassed because of the employee’s protected status, such as: 

• Race
• Color
• Religion (including religious dress and grooming practices)
• Sex or gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, and related medical conditions)
• Gender identity, or gender expression
• Sexual orientation
• Marital status
• Medical Condition (genetic characteristics, cancer, or a record or history of cancer)
• Military or veteran status
• National origin (including language use)
• Ancestry
• Disability (mental and physical, including HIV/AIDS, cancer, and genetic characteristics)
• Genetic information
• Age (over 40)

Discrimination or harassment because an employee, for example, always wears blue shoes, is not an unlawful employment action (unless the blue shoes were part of a religious dress or the source of another protected status).

What Is Discrimination in the Workplace?

Discrimination means the disparate treatment of an employee because of the employee’s protected status.

Treating someone differently, or worse, because of the employee’s race, religion, sex, disability, age, or other protected status, is illegal. The disparate treatment must be an adverse employment action, which means conduct that affected the terms, conditions, or privileges of employment.

Understanding Workplace Harassment

Harassment means unwelcome conduct that creates a work environment that is hostile, intimidating, offensive, oppressive, or abusive.

By definition, such conduct must be severe or pervasive enough to cause a hostile work environment. Just like discrimination, the harassment must be because of the employee’s protected status.

Distinctions and Overlap between Discrimination and Harassment

Both discrimination and harassment claims protect against conduct based on the employee’s protected status.

Discrimination protects against adverse employment actions. Examples include not being hired, being unfairly criticized or reprimanded, being overly critiqued in performance reviews, or being denied a promotion or other benefit of employment.

Harassment focuses on workplace conduct and looks at whether the environment was so intolerable that a reasonable employee should not be expected to endure it. Examples include constant teasing or bullying based on race or gender.

Typically, in order to hold an employer liable for harassment, the employee must show that either a supervisor engaged in the conduct or that the supervisors or management knew about the conduct but failed to take immediate and appropriate action.

Employers Cannot Retaliate Against Employees

An employee has the right to complain about any unlawful discrimination or harassment that occurs in the workplace. This is considered a protected activity.

In response to receiving a complaint, the employer cannot retaliate against the employee with an adverse employment action. An example is reducing an employee’s shifts for making a complaint about racism in the workplace.

Failure to Prevent Discrimination, Harassment, or Retaliation

Employers must also take all reasonable steps to prevent unlawful discrimination or harassment, or retaliation. This means that even if the supervisors or managers did not engage in any harassing conduct, they cannot ignore any unlawful harassment that may be present. Once an employee makes a complaint, an employer also has an obligation to take all reasonable steps to prevent any retaliation against the employee.

Employees Have Rights Regarding Workplace Misconduct

If you experienced discrimination or harassment at work, you have the option of filing a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department and filing a lawsuit in court.  

Our workplace discrimination lawyer at Litigation, P.C., will advocate on your behalf through either process, helping you obtain all forms of relief available in your case. For example, you may qualify to:

• Recover back pay, lost wages, and future earnings;
• Seek hiring, reinstatement, or a promotion;
• Obtain non-economic damages, such as for emotional distress; and
• Recover legal costs and attorney’s fees.

What Can I Do if I Am Harassed at Work?

Any employee who believes she or he is being harassed or discriminated against at work is entitled to make a complaint directly to HR (human resources), or a supervisor or manager. It is illegal for any employer or person to terminate or otherwise retaliate against any employee for opposing any violation of the FEHA.

Why You Need a California Workplace Harassment Attorney

Discrimination and harassment are common terms used in our everyday lives. But unlawful employment discrimination or harassment only provides legal protection against certain conduct. An experienced workplace harassment attorney can help determine whether the employer engaged in any unlawful conduct and, for any employees who were victims, ensure that the maximum recovery permissible under the law is obtained.