Torrance Employment Discrimination

Torrance is located in Los Angeles County. It has 1.5 miles of beach running along the Pacific Ocean. Torrance hosts a number of major employers including Torrance Memorial Medical Center, Honda R&D Americas, American Honda Motor Co. Inc., Robinson Helicopter Co., Exxon Mobil Refinery, Honeywell Aerospace, J-Tech, and Younger Optics. Employment discrimination can occur in a wide variety of workplace environments, and often goes unreported. If you have experienced unequal treatment on the job, a seasoned Torrance employment discrimination attorney can assess whether you have been subject to illegal conduct.

Both federal and state laws prohibit employment discrimination in Torrance. There are multiple federal laws that prohibit employment discrimination based on various protected characteristics. For example, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits employment discrimination based on disability. For another example, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employment discrimination based on sex, race, national origin, religion, and color.

Retaliation occurs when an employer tries to punish an employee for exercising his or her rights to complain in good faith about discrimination and harassment. It is illegal for your employer to retaliate against you for filing or being a witness in an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charge, for communicating with a supervisor about employment discrimination such as harassment, for answering questions during an employer investigation of harassment, for refusing to follow employer orders that would cause discrimination, for asking coworkers for salary information to reveal potentially discriminatory wages, for asking for an accommodation for a disability, or for resisting sexual advances.

If you are discriminated against, retaliated against, or harassed for asserting your right to be free from employment discrimination under federal law, you can file a charge with the EEOC. Filing a charge is a protected activity, and an employment discrimination lawyer serving Torrance can help.

The California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) usually provides greater protection than federal law from discrimination, retaliation, and harassment. This law applies to all employers that have at least 5 full time or part time employees, and it also includes anti-harassment provisions that apply to all employers with at least one employee. Protected characteristics under FEHA include color, race, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital status, military or veteran status, ancestry, national origin, disability, genetic information, request for family leave care, request for leave for an employee’s serious health condition, request for pregnancy disability leave, age over 40, and retaliation for reporting patient abuse.

Generally a complaint of employment discrimination under FEHA needs to be filed within a year from the date of the alleged discrimination, harassment, or retaliation. You’ll need to file this complaint with the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) regardless of whether you want to file a case directly in court. If you want to sue in court, you can ask for an immediate right to sue notice when you file the complaint. A skilled Torrance employment discrimination attorney can help you through this process.

When investigating, DFEH gathers evidence to decide whether the allegations of the person complaining can be proven. The person filing the complaint is a complainant and the employer is a respondent. While investigating, DFEH will gather evidence from both sides, interview witnesses and parties and go through records. The investigation may take place on-site or through phone interviews. DFEH is authorized to take interviews under oath, issue interrogatories or subpoenas, and ask for temporary restraining orders in the course of investigating. The gathered evidence will be analyzed to decide whether there’s been a violation of FEHA.

Damages available under FEHA may include back pay, front pay, compensatory damages, attorneys’ fees and costs, and punitive damages.

Employment discrimination can cause serious damage, including not only financial harm, but also emotional harm. If you are concerned about an employment discrimination matter in Torrance, the Calderone Law Firm can potentially help. We may be able to provide tenacious and knowledgeable representation in a charge filed with the EEOC or DFEH, as well as any subsequent litigation in the courtroom. Please call the Calderone Law Firm at (424) 348-8290 or contact us through our online form.