Workplace Discrimination Lawyers in California

Understanding Workplace Discrimination

Discrimination in the workplace occurs when an employer treats an employee unfairly or differently because of a protected characteristic such as race, gender, disability, or age.

These protections are guaranteed under California's Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), which applies to most employers with five or more employees and is enforced by the California Civil Rights Department. Federal anti-discrimination laws, enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), provide additional protection.

Discrimination can happen at any stage of employment, from hiring and promotion decisions to pay, benefits, or upon termination. It can also be overt or appear as subtle patterns of bias or harassment that create a hostile work environment. 

Not every unfair decision is illegal. A manager who plays favorites or a promotion that goes to someone you think is less deserving is not discrimination on its own. It becomes unlawful when the decision is made because of a protected characteristic.

• Racial Discrimination: Racial discrimination occurs when an employee is treated unfairly due to their race, color, or ethnicity. This could include being passed over for promotions, receiving unequal pay, or facing racially charged comments or workplace harassment.
• Disability Discrimination: Employers cannot fire, demote, or refuse to hire someone because of a physical or mental disability, and must provide reasonable accommodations unless doing so would cause undue hardship. See disability discrimination.
• Gender and Sex Discrimination: Gender discrimination includes unfair treatment based on sex, gender, gender identity, or gender expression. It often overlaps with sexual harassment and unequal pay.
• Sexual Orientation Discrimination: Employers cannot treat you differently because you are gay, lesbian, bisexual, or straight.
• Age Discrimination: Workers 40 and older are protected under both FEHA and the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). Employers cannot use age as a basis for hiring, promoting, firing, or demoting an employee. See age discrimination.
• Pregnancy Discrimination: Employees who are pregnant or have recently given birth cannot be fired, demoted, or treated worse because of pregnancy. Separate laws also give them rights to reasonable accommodation and job-protected leave. See pregnancy discrimination.
• Religious Discrimination: Employers must respect your right to practice your religion. This includes accommodating religious dress, holidays, and observances, unless doing so creates undue hardship. See religious discrimination.
• National Origin and Ancestry Discrimination: Treating employees worse because of where they or their family come from, their accent, or their language is prohibited. See national origin discrimination.
• Medical Condition and Other Protections: California also protects medical condition, genetic information, marital status, reproductive health decisions, and veteran or military status.

No matter the type of discrimination you've faced, LFECR's discrimination attorneys are ready to stand up for your rights.

Signs You May Be Experiencing Workplace Discrimination

Discrimination isn’t always obvious. Some employees experience clear mistreatment, while others feel something is “off” but can’t immediately identify why. Here are common warning signs: 

• You are being excluded from projects, meetings, or advancement opportunities despite having the qualifications for them.
• You have been subjected to offensive comments, jokes, or slurs related to your race, gender, age, religion, disability, or another protected characteristic.
• You received a sudden negative performance review, demotion, or termination that followed closely after reporting a concern or after a change in a protected status such as a pregnancy or a disability disclosure.
• Employees outside your protected group are treated more favorably in similar situations, such as receiving promotions, better assignments, or leniency that you were not given.
• Your requests for reasonable accommodation related to a disability, religion, or pregnancy were denied without a clear business reason.
• You were paid less than coworkers in comparable roles and the pay gap appears connected to your gender, race, or another protected characteristic.
• You were passed over for a promotion and the person selected had objectively less experience or fewer qualifications.
  

These signs are not proof on their own. What matters is whether the evidence, taken together, connects the decision to a protected characteristic.

Facing discrimination at work can feel isolating and overwhelming, especially when your livelihood is at stake. Our legal team investigates complex discrimination claims and negotiates on behalf of employees who have been discriminated against, including wrongfully terminated employees.

When you contact our employment law firm, here's what you can expect:

• A free, confidential case review. You can speak with an experienced employment discrimination attorney who will listen to your story and evaluate your case.
• Thorough investigation. We gather evidence such as emails, witness statements, and performance records to prove discriminatory intent or patterns of bias.
• Strong negotiation and advocacy. We negotiate with employers and their insurers to seek fair settlements, and if they refuse to make things right, we're fully prepared to take your case to court.

Our California discrimination attorneys understand what it takes to build a strong case, and we are committed to pursuing every form of compensation available under the law.

Lawyers for Employee and Consumer Rights is an employee-side firm founded in 2015 and based in Burbank. We represent workers in all 58 California counties, never represent employers, and handle discrimination cases on a contingency basis, so you pay no attorney's fees unless we recover for you. Our team assists clients in English and Spanish. Learn more about our firm.