California employment lawyers
California Workplace Discrimination Lawyers for Employees
Fired, demoted, passed over, or pushed out, and you think it was because of who you are? We represent California employees only, never employers. The review is free and confidential, and you pay nothing unless we win.
What Counts as Illegal Discrimination in California
California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act, Government Code section 12940(a), makes it unlawful for an employer to refuse to hire, to discharge, or to discriminate in compensation or in the terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because of a protected characteristic. In plain terms, bad treatment at work becomes illegal when a protected trait is what drove it.
Unfair, by itself, is not the same as illegal. A boss can be harsh, play favorites, or make a bad call, and none of that is a lawsuit unless a protected trait is the reason. We tell you that honestly at the outset. It is the first question we answer in your review.
Illegal discrimination reaches far past firing. It covers refusing to hire or promote, demotions, pay cuts, an undesirable reassignment, schedule manipulation meant to push you out, and denial of the training your peers received.
Protected Classes Under FEHA
Disability
Physical, mental, and medical conditions, including failure to accommodate.
Pregnancy
Pregnancy, childbirth, and related conditions.
Age
Employees 40 and over.
Race
Race, color, and ethnic characteristics, including hair under the CROWN Act.
Gender and Sex
Sex, gender, and gender-based treatment.
LGBTQ
Sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression.
Religion
Religion and religious creed, including accommodation.
National Origin and Immigration Status
Ancestry, language, and immigration status.
AI and Automated Hiring Decisions
Algorithmic screening under the automated decision system regulations from the California Civil Rights Department (CRD), the state agency that handles discrimination complaints.
FEHA also protects characteristics without a dedicated page here: marital status, military and veteran status, medical condition, genetic information, ancestry, and reproductive health decisionmaking. If your situation touches one of these, the free review routes it.
New in California: since January 1, 2025, SB 1137 confirms that FEHA claims can rest on a combination of protected traits, for example age plus sex, recognizing what courts call intersectionality. California is the first state to write this into its civil rights statutes.
Why FEHA Beats Federal Law for California Employees
| Issue | California FEHA | Federal law |
|---|---|---|
| Employer size | 5 employees (1 for harassment) | Title VII: 15; ADEA: 20 |
| Damages cap | Compensatory and punitive damages uncapped | Title VII: combined compensatory and punitive capped $50,000 to $300,000 by employer size |
| Filing deadline | 3 years to file with the CRD | 300 days with the EEOC |
| Individual liability | Harassers can be personally liable; contractors and unpaid interns have harassment protection | Generally employer only |
The practical takeaway: for the large majority of California employees, FEHA is the stronger route. We never apply the 300 day clock from the EEOC, the federal agency that handles job discrimination complaints, to a FEHA claim. That mistake has cost employees their cases.
How Do You Prove Discrimination at Work?
Direct evidence, someone saying we are letting you go because you are too old, is rare. Most cases are proven with circumstantial evidence through a burden shifting framework courts adopted from McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Green. You show you are in a protected class, were qualified and performing, suffered an adverse action, and that the circumstances suggest a discriminatory reason. The employer then states a legitimate reason, and you show that reason is a pretext.
Evidence of pretext includes suspicious timing, comparators who were treated better for the same conduct, shifting or inconsistent explanations, deviation from the employer’s own written policy, statistical patterns, remarks by decision makers, and being replaced by someone outside your class. So called me too evidence, other employees’ experiences with the same manager, can sometimes come in as well.
The CRD Process, Step by Step
The California Civil Rights Department, formerly the DFEH, administers FEHA. You must obtain a right to sue letter from the CRD before filing a FEHA case in court.
- An intake interview or online filing.
- A complaint filed within three years of the last discriminatory act.
- A choice between a CRD investigation or an immediate right to sue notice, which is typical when you are represented.
- An optional mediation.
- Then one year from the date of the right to sue letter to file in Superior Court.
Here is the trap we see constantly. Employees request an immediate right to sue on their own, then let the one year clock run out before they talk to a lawyer. If you are holding a right to sue letter, your deadline is already running. Call today.
What Is a Discrimination Case Worth in California?
Value turns on the strength of your documentation, the size of your wage loss, the size and conduct of the employer, and your venue. There is no honest flat number before a review. See what decides case value and illustrative settlement ranges.
- Back pay and front pay.
- Emotional distress damages with no cap.
- Punitive damages under Civil Code section 3294 where the conduct is egregious.
- Attorney fees, costs, and expert fees under Government Code section 12965.
- Orders for hiring, reinstatement, or promotion.
Any dollar ranges we show are illustrative, not a prediction of your result.
The Employer Defense Playbook, and Our Counters
“Legitimate business reason.” Often a performance file assembled after you complained. We counter with your actual review history and the timing.
“The same manager who hired you fired you.” The same actor inference. We counter with changed circumstances, new decision makers, or bias evidence that developed later.
“Those were just stray remarks.” Employers try to isolate slurs and comments as irrelevant. We tie the speaker to the decision.
The arbitration motion. We examine how the agreement was formed and whether it is unconscionable. Where sexual harassment facts exist, the federal EFAA can carve the case out of forced arbitration.
What to Do Right Now
- Write a dated timeline naming who said and did what, and who witnessed it.
- Save reviews, emails, texts, and the policies your employer skipped, in a personal account and not on a work device.
- Request your personnel file. Labor Code section 1198.5 gives you that right.
- If you are still employed, report the conduct in writing. It builds the record and triggers retaliation protection.
- Do not sign anything, and book the free case review.
Find Out Where You Stand
Three questions and a phone number. An attorney reads every one, and you hear back within one business day.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I Sue for Discrimination If I Still Work There?
Yes. And if you are punished for complaining, that retaliation is a second, separate claim. See retaliation.
My employer has only 6 employees. Am I covered?
Yes. FEHA discrimination protection starts at five employees, and harassment protection starts at one.
Do I Have to File With the CRD Before Suing?
For a FEHA claim, yes. You must exhaust the administrative process and get a right to sue letter first.
What If I Have No Written Proof?
Timing, comparators, and witnesses win cases every day. See the evidence checklist.
How Long Does a CRD Complaint Take?
A full investigation can take many months. With counsel, most employees request an immediate right to sue and proceed to court.
What Is the Average Discrimination Settlement in California?
It varies widely by facts. See illustrative ranges.
Can Independent Contractors Sue for Discrimination?
FEHA harassment protections expressly cover contractors. Discrimination coverage differs by role.
What Is the Difference Between Discrimination and Harassment?
Discrimination is an adverse job action driven by a protected trait. Harassment is hostile conduct that creates an abusive environment. See harassment.
Going deeper: Every protected characteristic under FEHA, with the employee threshold that applies to each. Protected classes under California FEHA: A complete guide to race, age, disability, pregnancy, LGBTQ+, religion, and more
Employment Law Resources
- California Civil Rights Department, FEHA protected classes and how to file: calcivilrights.ca.gov
- Government Code section 12940, unlawful employment practices: leginfo
- Government Code section 12965, fees, costs, remedies: leginfo
- U.S. EEOC, federal charge deadlines: eeoc.gov
- SB 1137 intersectionality amendment, eff. 1/1/2025: leginfo
Tell Us What Happened
One business day for a response. You pay nothing unless we win.