Discrimination/Harassment
Employment Discrimination and Harassment
California Job Discrimination Laws
Federal and California job discrimination laws prohibit unequal treatment or harassment in the workplace due to an employee’s gender, race, color, age, national origin, ancestry, religion, pregnancy or childbirth, or disability (mental, physical or perceived). In addition, California job discrimination law prohibits discrimination or harassment based on sexual orientation, marital status, or “medical condition” (i.e., cancer or genetic characteristics).
Local laws in California may provide even further protection. For example, San Francisco prohibits discrimination against or harassment of an employee because of his or her height or weight. The California job discrimination law firm of Rukin Hyland Doria & Tindall stands ready to advise and represent your best interests. Contact us to learn more.
Understanding Discrimination
Personality conflicts on the job are not cause for discrimination lawsuits. In a successful case of race discrimination, unfavorable actions taken by an employer against an employee must exist. Proving that an adverse job action (discharge, demotion, reduction in pay, denied promotion, etc.) is discriminatory is often complicated, because employers rarely admit they acted with a discriminatory motive.
An employee must do more than show that an employer’s decision is unfair or wrong; employees must have evidence that an action was motivated by discriminatory bias. For example, when an employer’s stated reason for firing an employee is workplace misconduct, an employee may prove discrimination in part by showing that the employer did not fire other employees who engaged in the same misconduct.
Harassment and Hostile Work Environment
The laws do not protect employees from every minor grievance or slight. For example, harassment, including sexual harassment, is only unlawful if it is either “severe” or “pervasive” (extremely serious or repeated and continuous). Hostile work environments exist when managers, supervisors or co-workers engage in unwanted, abusive behaviors that create an intimidating, verbally or physically offensive atmosphere in the workplace.
We also represent Bay Area employees suffering from mistreatment because of:
Contact our San Francisco Sexual Harassment Lawyers
If you believe you have been the victim of unlawful discrimination or harassment anywhere from San Jose, Fremont, Hayward or North Bay areas, contact us through this website or by phone at 415-421-1800, for help from our knowledgeable job discrimination law firm.
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