Employment Law Attorney in Marin County Assisting Clients with Discrimination Claims

Employment discrimination is prohibited under federal and state law in California. Discrimination can occur in the hiring process, during employment, or in the decision to terminate an employee. Employees should know their rights when it comes to discrimination, and employers should understand their responsibilities to prevent and investigate discrimination allegations.

To learn more, you should speak with a Marin County discrimination lawyer.

Forms of Discrimination in the Marin County Workplace

Employment discrimination can take many forms.  Discrimination based on a person’s membership in a protected class is unlawful.  Examples of workplace discrimination include but are not limited to:

• Sexual harassment;
• Refusing to hire or promote a person based on his or her age;
• Deciding to hire or promote a person based on his or her race or national origin;
• Refusing to hire or promote a person based on his or her religion;
• Making employment decisions based on a person’s sex or pregnancy status;
• Failing to pay a female employee a similar salary to a male employee who is doing substantially similar work;
• Terminating an employee because she is a member of a protected class; and
• Retaliating against an employee because she files a discrimination claim or serves as a witness in a workplace discrimination case.

Whether you file a federal or a state claim, you will need to go through administrative channels–known as exhausting administrative remedies–before you can be eligible to file a lawsuit.  An individual exhausts his or her administrative remedies by filing a charge of discrimination with the Department of Fair Employment and Housing or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.  Filing a charge of discrimination with one of these agencies will preserve the employee’s ability to bring a lawsuit in court.  The employee should contact a Marin County discrimination attorney to find out the deadline for exhausting administrative remedies.

Sex Discrimination and Sexual Harassment in Marin County

Sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination. Both sex discrimination and sexual harassment are prohibited by federal and state law:

• Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits sex discrimination at work (federal law), and claims must be filed through the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC); and
• Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) prohibits sex discrimination and sexual harassment in California (state law, and claims must be filed through the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH).

Discrimination on the Basis of Race, Color, National Origin, or Religion

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 also prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, and religion. It is unlawful under federal law for an employer to discriminate on these bases, and an employee may be able to file a claim through the EEOC.

The FEHA also prohibits these forms of discrimination under California state law, and employees may be able to file claims through the DFEH.

Disability Discrimination in Marin County

Discrimination against an individual on the basis of her disability is also prohibited under federal and state law:

• Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal law that requires employees to make reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities and prohibits employers from discriminating against an employee because of her disability.
• California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) functions similarly to the ADA, requiring employers to make reasonable accommodations and to prohibit from discriminating in hiring or making promotion or termination decisions.

ADA claims must go through the EEOC, while FEHA claims must go through the DFEH. When an employer refuses to consider a leave of absence as a reasonable accommodation, this also may constitute disability discrimination.

Contact a Marin County Discrimination Attorney

If you have questions about discrimination claims, you should reach out to a Marin County disability discrimination attorney. Contact Minnis & Smallets LLP today.