When a person is treated differently based on sexual orientation, it is considered discrimination. Unfortunately, there have been more and more cases of this type of discrimination surfacing in the workplace. It can occur in recruitment, hiring, promotions, and even job training and assignments.
California has made significant strides in protecting the rights of LGBTQ individuals, however, employees still regularly face wrongful termination due to their sexual orientation. Still, others have been unable to continue working because a hostile environment makes work intolerable. I understand the importance of protecting and enforcing the rights of individuals who face unfair treatment.
There were no reliable nationwide protections against LGBTQ+ discrimination in the United States until 2020, though California has had its own statewide anti-discrimination protections regarding sexual orientation in place since 2003.
The California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) has long extended workplace anti-discrimination and harassment laws to gay, lesbian, and transgender employees. The FEHA also provides discrimination protections to individuals due to their sex or gender, gender identity, gender nonconformity, or gender expression.
An employee can bring a discrimination claim under FEHA if their employer has a minimum of five employees. Furthermore, the employer only needs to have one worker for employees to be able to file harassment charges based on sexual orientation under state law.
Some common examples of sexual orientation discrimination include:
These are only a few examples of the many ways that sexual orientation discrimination can occur in California workplaces.
Those who have successful sexual orientation discrimination cases can recover compensation for several types of damages, including:
In addition, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) can also impose administrative fines against employers who violate discrimination laws. Keep in mind that the damages that apply vary from one case to the next depending on the specifics of the claim. It’s best to speak with an experienced San Francisco sexual orientation discrimination lawyer about what damages might be available in your claim and how much they might be worth.
Whomever you choose to love and your gender expression shouldn’t affect your career opportunities or result in a hostile work environment. Our San Francisco sexual orientation discrimination attorney has experience representing victims in filing complaints under FEHA for sexual identity discrimination.
Contact the Law Office of Jeannette A. Vaccaro today to schedule a confidential consultation. During this crucial meeting, we will address your questions about your rights under California employment laws and provide reliable legal guidance regarding workplace rights, unlawful workplace retaliation, or wrongful termination. The sooner you contact us, the sooner we can help.
Jeannette is passionate about employee rights. She fights to shed light on injustices and to help her clients move beyond troubling times. Contact Jeannette today for a free case evaluation.
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Arbitration award obtained on behalf of employee terminated on account of his national origin.
Jury verdict obtained on behalf of long-term employee in suit for unpaid wages.
Settlement for employee that was retaliated against on account of reporting discrimination.
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Settlement negotiated in a gender discrimination case.