employment & sports management law firm
CONSULTING. REPRESENTATION. MANAGEMENT. LITIGATION
FOR MOMENTS THAT MATTER
FIGHTING FOR EMPLOYEE RIGHTS FOR 30 YEARS
DISCRIMINATION & HARASSMENT
California law protects individuals from illegal discrimination and harassment by employers based on the following:
- Race, color
- Ancestry, national origin
- Religion, creed
- Age (40 and over)
- Disability, mental and physical
- Sex, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding or related medical conditions)
- Sexual orientation
- Gender identity, gender expression
- Medical condition
- Genetic information
- Marital status
- Military or veteran status
SEXUAL HARASSMENT
Harassment based on sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions), gender, gender identity, gender expression or sexual orientation is unlawful. It may include unwanted sexual advances or visual, verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature. This definition includes many forms of offensive behavior and includes gender-based harassment of a person of the same sex as the harasser. Examples of prohibited behavior that violates your rights at work:
- Visual conduct: leering, making sexual gestures, displaying of sexually suggestive objects or pictures, cartoons or posters.
- Verbal conduct: making or using derogatory comments, epithets, slurs and jokes. Verbal abuse of a sexual nature, graphic verbal commentaries about an individual’s body, sexually degrading words used to describe an individual.
- Physical conduct: touching, assault, impeding or blocking movements.
- Offering employment benefits in exchange for sexual favors.
- Making or threatening retaliatory action after receiving a negative response to sexual advances.
RETALIATION
Any adverse employment action taken against you as an employee because you engaged in protected activity at work such as being a witness to wrongful conduct, reporting or assisting in reporting suspected wrongful conduct, violations of policy or law; or merely speaking out or expressing concerns of what you reasonable believe may be wrongful conduct and violations of policy/law is unlawful.
Examples of retaliation may include termination; demotion; discipline; suspension; reduction in pay; denial of salary increase; failure to hire; failure to promote; denying employment opportunities; changing your work assignments; treating you differently such as denying an accommodation; or not talking to you when otherwise required by job duties; or excluding you from job-related activities because you complained or reported unlawful conduct or what you reasonable perceived as being unlawful conduct.