San Diego EEOC Lawyer
San Diego EEOC Attorney
Being discriminated against in the workplace can feel heartbreaking, offensive, and degrading all at the same time. It’s a feeling that can be tough to move past, and you may want to take legal action against your discriminators if only to hold them accountable for their misplaced actions.
It is vital that you take the necessary steps to protect yourself if you are discriminated against in the workplace by hiring a San Diego EEOC lawyer to represent your case.
Workplace discrimination can involve many different things. Thanks to the efforts of the EEOC, it is easier to protect workers’ rights and pursue compensatory damages in the face of rampant discrimination in the workplace. Under California state law, any employer that employs at least five people must abide by anti-discrimination laws, provide their employees with up to four months of disability leave, and provide employees with comprehensive sexual harassment training.
Workplace discrimination does not just begin in the workplace. The EEOC prevents discrimination based on age, race, religion, skin color, gender identity, national origin, and disability across every aspect of employment. Here are just a few of the different facets of employment that are protected by EEOC regulations:
Workplace Harassment
There are many different kinds of harassment, but all of them can make you feel disrespected, unsafe, and unwanted in the workplace. It is illegal to harass someone because of any of their protected traits, such as sex, age, race, and gender identity. Furthermore, it is illegal to harass someone who has complained about harassment in the workplace. This would constitute retaliation.
Your employer cannot legally retaliate against anyone who has participated in a workplace discrimination discussion, claim, complaint, or investigation. Harassment can take many forms, such as:
- Derogatory slurs
- Offensive comments aimed at a specific person or just spoken generally
- Unwelcome sexual advances
- Offensive imagery being transmitted to others in the workplace
- Physical attacks
Job Postings
Employer cannot legally post a job advertisement that specifically excludes people of a protected class. Additionally, employers cannot post a job advertisement requesting applications only from specific groups of people, such as only women or only people under the age of 40. Doing so would violate labor laws and open the employer to a potential discrimination claim.
Job Applications
When an employer is seeking to hire someone for a posted job and they are at the application phase, it is illegal for the employer to exclude certain applications based solely on someone’s race, age, religion, gender identity, or another protected class. An employer cannot make hiring decisions based solely on those traits. If the employer decides not to hire an applicant based on their past job history or lack of education, they are allowed to do so.
Promotions
Under EEOC regulations, advancement in a company should be based on merit, job performance, and necessity. A potential candidate’s protected class cannot legally factor into the employer’s decision to promote. For example, a supervisor cannot give preference to people of one class when deciding on who gets more overtime, and they cannot segregate people of certain protected classes into specific areas.
Understanding Discriminatory Practices in the Workplace
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, or EEOC, is a federal agency dedicated to keeping employees across the nation safe from discriminatory practices and workplace harassment. Thanks to this agency and the legislation surrounding it, it is illegal for any employer to discriminate against employees or prospective employees based on their protected classes. These can include:
- Age
- Race
- Disability
- National origin
- Sexual orientation
- Gender identity
- Religion
- Pregnancy status
- Marital status
- Genetic information
The California Family Rights Act (CFRA) ensures that any employer who provides jobs for at least five people must comply with anti-discrimination laws established by state and federal regulations. Thanks to the CFRA, California employers must also provide their employees with comprehensive sexual harassment prevention training and education. They must also allow up to four months of disability leave for employees to deal with pregnancy, childbirth, or a condition related to pregnancy.
What Is Workplace Discrimination?
Discriminatory actions can happen throughout the employment and application process. It is not unique to the workplace. It can happen to you before you are even selected for an interview. Whether you will face discrimination while applying for a job depends entirely on the business practices of the company you are applying to.
Whenever discrimination happens to you, the last thing you should do is take it lightly. If you face that kind of behavior as early as the interview process or even earlier, it could be indicative of a much larger problem within the company itself. An EEOC lawyer can help you decide what your next steps should be in seeking compensation or accountability from a discriminatory company. Here are some examples of job-related discrimination that have been prohibited by EEOC regulations:
Workplace Harassment
Being harassed in the workplace can make you feel small, weak, unappreciated, and isolated. If it ever happens to you, in any form, you should start preserving evidence of the harassment and prepare to report it to the correct department within your company. Sometimes, you may not even realize that you are being harassed until you’ve spoken with others who’ve been treated the same.
After you report the incident to your supervisor or HR department, you may want to consider reaching out to an EEOC lawyer and lodging a formal complaint with the EEOC. Under California labor laws, your employer cannot legally discriminate against their employees or any prospective employees because of protected traits. Your employer also cannot legally retaliate against you or any other employees for reporting discriminatory behavior.
Job Postings
It is illegal for an employer to tailor a job posting to exclude a certain demographic from applying for that job. Such behavior violates EEOC regulations and California labor laws. For example, they cannot specify in the posting that they are only looking for female candidates. That’s blatant discrimination and could result in legal action being taken against the employer.
FAQs
Q: What Is the EEOC Equivalent in California?
A: The state equivalent of the EEOC in California is the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, or DFEH. Both agencies were established to protect the rights of workers from discrimination and harassment alike. These agencies can also enforce discrimination laws against employers who violate them. In cases of extreme discrimination done against employees in California, the DFEH can be of significant help when it comes time to file a claim.
Q: What Is an Unfair Act of Discrimination?
A: An unfair act of discrimination is any action in the workplace that deliberately seeks to exclude, marginalize, or insult a specific group of people based on a protected class trait. It can happen when one person is treated unfairly because of their race, age, religion, or sexual orientation, just to name a few, or it can happen when many people are treated unfairly for the same reasons. Discrimination happens in the workplace all the time; if you experience it, you should report it.
Q: Can My Employer Retaliate Against Me If I No Longer Work for Them?
A: No, your employer cannot legally retaliate against you if you are no longer employed by the company. Frustrated employers cannot seek legal retaliation against former employees, prospective employees, current employees, or job applicants. If you are worried that your former employer will seek to mark you as unemployable because you once participated in a campaign against them, you may want to seek out an EEOC lawyer to see what your options are.
Q: How Can My Employer Prevent Workplace Harassment?
A: The most effective way to prevent harassment in the workplace is for employers to foster a positive work environment that is openly intolerant of harassment and other discriminatory behavior in the workplace. This can be easier said than done. However, with the help of encouragement, open platforms for ideas, and assurance that nobody will be punished for being honest and coming forward, it may be possible to foster that kind of work environment and help prevent workplace harassment.
Reach Out to an Experienced EEOC Lawyer Today
Dealing with the fallout of workplace discrimination or harassment can be detrimental to your mental and emotional health. It can feel isolating to handle something like this on your own. Thankfully, you don’t have to.
An experienced EEOC lawyer can help you figure out the most effective way to handle a case like yours. You may be able to hold your employer accountable for inaction or for engaging in discriminatory practices.
Diefer Law Group, P.C., can help you develop your case, gather the right kind of evidence that supports your claim, and ensure that you are not taken advantage of by your employer while you work to hold them accountable. Reach out to schedule a consultation.
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