Employment And Labor Law
Everyone has bad days at work. Days when performance demands are high, when it just doesn’t seem like there are enough hours in the day to complete tasks, or when you make a mistake and have to start all over again. This is par for the course. However, when one’s experience is marred by a hostile work environment, by the sexual advances of a supervisor, or by denied wages, the day to day troubles of the workplace fade into the background. If you have lost your job as the result of discrimination, or are currently working under inequitable working conditions, contact the lawyers at the Los Angeles law office of Toni Jaramilla, A Professional Law Corporation.
- Wrongful termination and retaliation
- Discrimination and harassment
(sexual harassment, gender issues) - Labor issues (unpaid Wages, misclassification, meal or rest break violations, retaliation for complaining of safety violations)
Wrongful Termination And Retaliation
California and federal statutes protect employees from being terminated or treated differently because they fall within one of the following protected categories: race, color, national origin, gender (including gender identity) physical and mental disability, medical condition (cancer, AIDS, HIV status), marital status, sexual orientation, transgender and transsexual, age (40 years and over), pregnancy, childbirth or other related medical conditions. A “wrongful termination” case must be discrimination based on one of the above categories. Otherwise, the termination may not necessarily be unlawful. Although, another type of claim may exist.
In addition, an employee cannot be retaliated against. Retaliation can take many forms, including termination, demotion, denying an employee of a deserved promotion, negative evaluations, or some other means of punishment. The laws protect employees against retaliation for complaining of workplace discrimination and harassment or about being paid unfairly for overtime work or other wage claims. Employers cannot retaliate against whistle blowers, those who complain about an employers’ illegal conduct or about an unsafe workplace. An employee also cannot be terminated simply because they requested an accommodation for their disability or because they exercised their right to take a protected leave of absence under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), These are just some examples of wrongful termination and retaliation claims that our firm handles. Contact our office today to discuss your potential claims of wrongful termination or other workplace abuses.
Discrimination And Harassment
California is one of the most progressive states when it comes to protecting employees from discrimination and harassment. California and federal statutes protect employees from differential treatment and workplace abuse motivated because of a person’s: race, color, national origin, gender (including gender identity), physical and mental disability, medical condition (cancer, AIDS, HIV status), marital status, sexual orientation, age (40 years and over), pregnancy, childbirth or other related medical conditions.
If you believe that you have been treated differently because you are part of a protected category as listed above, contact our office today to see if you have a potential case.
Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment range in severity and subtlety. Rape or sexual battery is the most egregious. However, more subtle forms of sexual harassment are also actionable, such as sexual jokes, lewd pictures, leering at body parts, sexual comments and touching, and implied or explicit requests for sexual favors in exchange for a promotion or threats of termination.
Also, most think of sexual harassment with traditional ideas of a male supervisor sexually harassing a female subordinate. However, there is a growing number of cases involving females harassing males, or harassment between the same gender. Regardless of gender, the sexual harassment laws protect everyone. If you believe you have been sexually harassed, contact our office today so we can evaluate whether the conduct amounts to the level of sexual harassment under the law. Call our firm to discuss your situation and whether you have an employment law claim with an experienced lawyer.
Gender Issues
Gender equality is expected in the workplace and the law requires it. Unfortunately, particularly in certain industries, women still find themselves under a glass ceiling at their jobs. They cannot penetrate pass a certain level of advancement, while men with lesser qualifications seem to easily advance in their careers.
Due to recent amendments in our state discrimination laws, gender discrimination claims now include “gender identity” issues. Employees who cross-dress for example (i.e., a male dressed in clothing traditionally expected to be worn by females, and vice versa), so long as the company dress codes are not violated, may have legal recourse if they are not treated equally because of their attire and gender identity. We handle all gender equality issues, including gender identity cases. If you feel that you have faced gender discrimination in your workplace, it may be time to take legal action. Contact our office to discuss your situation.