California Retaliation Lawyer
Sometimes employees are scared to do certain things in the workplace because they think their boss won’t approve. Sure, you may not want to commit a crime, for example, but file a workers’ compensation claim or complain about a safety issue? Go for it. Those are your rights.
You have various protections as an employee. You are protected if you are reporting something that may be unfavorable to your employer, such as:
- Workplace harassment
- Sexual harassment
- Workplace discrimination
- Wage theft
- Unpaid overtime
- Safety issues
- Accidents or injuries in the workplace
- Involvement in illegal activity
- Violation of employee rights
These are called protected activities. You are allowed to engage in those activities. If your employer takes adverse action against you, that is called retaliation, which is illegal.
Retaliation may include being fired, laid off, or demoted. You may be reassigned or passed over for promotions. Your employer may reduce your pay or give you undeserved negative performance reviews.
Retaliation is a serious issue that can affect your employment. If you have been affected, you need to act quickly. Proving your case can be difficult, because many employees are employed at-will. This means that workers do not have employment contracts, so the employer can terminate the relationship at any time and for almost any reason. Seek legal help from an California retaliation lawyer from The Garza Firm. We’ll help you understand your legal rights.
What Are Protected Activities?
Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) laws prohibit punishing job applicants or employees for asserting their rights. Asserting these rights is known as protected activity and it can take many forms. For example, it is illegal to retaliate against employees for:
- Filing an EEO complaint, investigation, or lawsuit
- Communicating with a supervisor or manager about discrimination or harassment
- Refusing to follow orders that would result in discrimination
- Answering questions during an investigation of alleged harassment
- Resisting sexual advances from a manager
- Requesting a reasonable accommodation of a disability
- Asking managers or co-workers about salary information
Examples of Retaliation
Retaliation occurs when a person is treated less favorably because they filed a complaint or engaged in some other protected activity. Some forms of retaliation include the following:
- Disciplining the employee for no clear reason
- Giving an employee a poor performance review that is undeserved
- Transferring the employee to a less desirable position
- Engaging in verbal or physical abuse
- Making threats
- Making reports to authorities
- Spreading false rumors
- Treating a family member negatively
- Making an employee’s work more difficult, such as by changing a schedule
Contact The Garza Firm Today
You should not face retaliation for exercising your legal rights. Even if your employer does not want you to take action, they cannot penalize you for doing so.
It’s important to contact The Garza Firm as soon as the retaliation occurs. Fired? Demoted? Our California retaliation lawyers can help. To schedule a consultation, fill out the online form or call (949) 570-8350.
