Under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), employers should provide eligible employees 12 weeks of job-secured, unpaid leave to bond with their newborn or take care of their own health conditions or family members with qualified health conditions. Likewise, employers must provide job-secured, unpaid leave, also called pregnancy disability leave…

Employees who are considering becoming pregnant or who are pregnant often have concerns about how a possible pregnancy may affect their employment. Fortunately, the federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), as well as California’s Fair Employment and…

A recent Buzzfeed News article credits Minnis & Smallets attorney Sonya Smallets for her efforts in litigating a workplace sexual discrimination case.   Ms. Smallets represented plaintiff Ciara Newton in her lawsuit against the Shell Martinez refinery. In the lawsuit, Ms. Newton alleged that she was subjected to harassment because of…

One reason why employees in California might be hesitant to report sexual harassment in the workplace is that, among other reasons, those employees might fear defamation claims brought by the alleged harassers. In an effort to protect California employees who report sexual harassment and sex discrimination, the California legislature passed…