Workplace discrimination can take many forms, and none of them are simple to address. Depending on the severity of the violation an employee experiences, remedies may vary greatly, but no discrimination claim is likely to succeed without careful planning and...
Month: March 2018
An overview of at-will employment
If a California resident is employed on an at-will basis, it means that this person or his or her employer may terminate a working relationship for any reason. Unless otherwise stated, all employment relationships are presumed to be at-will except in Montana. However,...
Age Discrimination in the Workplace: Don’t be a Victim
California laws provide important protections for employees and job applicants over 40 years of age. Age discrimination occurs when an employee or job applicant over the age of 40 receives less favorable treatment because of age. Employees are often not aware that age...
Wal-Mart sued for terminating whistleblower who exposed fraud in competition with Amazon
A whistleblower filed a lawsuit against Walmart today, alleging that the company committed fraudulent and misleading practices in order to thwart competition from Amazon and boost its stock price in the war for e-commerce sales. The lawsuit was filed by Tri Huynh, a...
What disabilities or medical conditions are protected in the workplace?
When does an employee's disability or medical condition qualify for legal protection? Let's first understand how a disability is defined under the law. The Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) defines two categories of disability -- (1) mental disabilities, and (2)...
When may employees take leave under the FMLA?
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) was signed into law in 1993, though many employees have not heard of the FMLA. In the simplest terms, the FMLA provides unpaid, job-protected leave for employees with a serious medical condition, or to care for a sick family...
Employee Leave Laws – Paid Family Leave (PFL), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the California Family Rights Act (CFRA)
The FMLA (federal) and CFRA (California) are leave laws that allow an employee to take unpaid leave from a job to care for oneself, a family member who is ill, or children who are unable to take care of themselves. PFL does not change either law and is separate from...
Constructive termination: When forcing an employee to quit is the same as being fired
Under the constructive termination principal, if you quit your job because the working conditions were so intolerable, your employer may still be responsible as if you were fired. If you had no reasonable alternative given the intolerable working conditions, read on....
Women in male-dominated workplaces report higher discrimination
Today, the global community recognizes International Women’s Day. Therefore, it’s only fitting to discuss the challenges that many women face in California alongside women’s rights. Unfortunately, workplace discrimination is still among these issues. A Pew Research...