Best Discrimination Lawyer in Los Angeles

Discrimination in the workplace should not be tolerated by anyone. If you’ve been a victim, you can turn to an experienced discrimination lawyer. 

Workplace discrimination occurs when a person is mistreated because of their race, sex, age, or disability. This unfair treatment can make people feel excluded, hurt, or even lose their jobs. Everyone should be treated with respect and kindness to have a fair chance to do a good job. When people feel included and valued, the workplace becomes a better place for everyone.

West Coast Employment Lawyers has the best discrimination lawyers who are passionate about protecting your rights and promoting fairness. We work tirelessly to identify and address injustice based on race, gender, age, disability or other protected classes. 

We have a deep understanding of state and federal law and our compassionate lawyers will seek the compensation, reinstatement, or other solution you deserve. 

At West Coast Employment Lawyers, our discrimination lawyers are readily available to assist victims of workplace discrimination. With our expertise in handling labor and employment cases, we are confident that we will get you the compensation you are entitled to. 

To schedule a free case evaluation with one of our top-rated discrimination lawyers, we welcome you to contact us by calling 213-927-3700, emailing info@westcoastemploymentlawyers.com, or completing our online contact form located on the bottom of the page.

How Unfair Treatment in the Workplace Could be a Sign of Discrimination

According to a 2021 survey released by Ten Spot, negative workplace experiences are still as common as ever. About 70 percent of respondents admitted to experiencing some form of discrimination or abuse at work. These participants also described their workplace as being depressing, toxic, or boring. 

If you believe you are being treated differently in the workplace due to your race, age, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or disability, you can file a discrimination claim against your employer.

You need to seek legal representation from an experienced discrimination lawyer if you plan on pursuing compensation for any damages your employer may have caused you. 

What Is a Discrimination Lawyer?

A discrimination lawyer represents applicants or employees who have been mistreated by their employer due to age, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, or their disability. Such Unlawful actions directed towards an applicant or employee can be punished through a discrimination claim. 

Many employers refuse to acknowledge an employee’s complaints and continue to exhibit reckless behavior that is in violation of California’s labor and employment laws. If you found yourself in a position where you are unfairly targeted by your employer, you may be eligible to take legal action against them to recover damages. 

To start, you need to have a discrimination lawyer representing you. A discrimination lawyer will handle all of the difficult parts of your claim, which include the following:

• Assessing your discrimination case
• Gathering evidence against your employer
• Reviewing the worth of your damages
• Filing a discrimination claim against your employer
• Negotiating a reasonable settlement offer
• Representing you in court, if necessary

Types of Discrimination Cases We Handle

There are many types of discrimination that occur in the workplace–some of which you might not even be aware of. This includes racial discrimination, age discrimination, pregnancy discrimination, gender discrimination, sexual orientation discrimination, religious discrimination, and disability discrimination. 

In the following sections, we have provided a description of each type of workplace discrimination, how it occurs, and what laws will help protect you against it. 

Racial Discrimination

Racism involves offensive language, gestures, or actions against someone based on their racial or ethnic group. If you are experiencing one or more of the following in the workplace, your employer may be committing racial discrimination against you:  

• Racial slurs or racial bullying directed towards you or coworkers of the same race
• Excessively being monitored by your employer
• No promotions even though you are a hard-working employee
• Getting seriously blamed for making a minor work-related mistake

Title VII and the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) prohibit racial discrimination in hiring, promotion, discharge, benefits, referral, training, and other aspects relating to employment.

For Title VII to become effective, the company will need to have 15 or more employees, whereas for FEHA to apply, the company will need to have at least five employees.

Age Discrimination

There have been instances where an employer developed age-based stereotypes against older applicants or employees. This has led to several inaccurate assumptions made against them, which include the following:

• They are less productive
• They are likely to take more time off to deal with an illness
• They are going to struggle when adapting to changes being made in the workplace
• They are going to retire soon
• They have skills that far exceed what the company is looking for

The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA) and FEHA protect applicants and employees who are 40 years old or older from age discrimination in terms of hiring, promotions, compensation, discharge, or employment benefits. 

Pregnancy Discrimination

Pregnancy discrimination may occur when an employer’s actions negatively affect an expecting applicant or employee. Some unlawful actions that have been directed towards pregnant applicants or employees include: 

• Rejecting an applicant because she is pregnant
• Firing an employee after she has made her pregnancy announcement
• Refusing to offer a pregnant employee a raise
• Determining what type of promotion or benefit to offer an employee based on her pregnancy
• Demoting a pregnant employee while they were on paid or unpaid leave
• Refusing to give reasonable accommodation to an employee who has a temporary pregnancy-related impairment

California has established several laws to protect pregnant applicants and employees from facing such mistreatment. 

• According to the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, it is prohibited for an employer to discriminate based on pregnancy. This law applies to employers who have five or more employees.
• The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects employees who have a pregnancy-related medical condition that classifies as a disability. An employer will need to have fifteen or more employees for this law to be enforced.
• The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act restricts employers from employment practices that don’t offer reasonable accommodations to employees who are going through a pregnancy, childbirth, or other type of pregnancy-related medical condition. This law is exempt from companies who have less than fifteen employees.
• Title VII and FEHA are other laws established to protect pregnant employees from experiencing pregnancy discrimination. 

Gender Discrimination

Gender discrimination can occur in many ways. For instance, pay inequality is a common issue that has been reported in several companies across California. Many executives assume that female employees are unable to perform as efficiently as men. This is considered as the most prevalent form of gender discrimination. 

Degrading and humiliating women is another form of gender discrimination that has been known to occur in the workplace. Female employees have expressed frustration towards experiencing sexual harassment, sexist jokes, and other forms of speech aimed towards belittling women. 

While gender discrimination victims are typically women, it can happen to men, too. And men are less likely to take action when discriminated against for their gender.

To protect employees against gender discrimination, California established Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and FEHA. These law prohibits employers from making decisions based on an employee’s gender. 

When it comes to fair pay, the Equal Pay Act will require employers to give male and female employees equal pay for doing the same work at the same company. 

Sexual Orientation Discrimination

An employer cannot refuse you employment or terminate your employment because of your sexual orientation. You cannot be denied advancement based on your sexuality. It is unlawful for a company to allow an environment of harassment, intimidation, or discrimination to exist against members of the LGBTQ+ community. 

In June 2020, the Supreme Court of the United States issued a landmark decision in the case of Bostock vs Clayton County. This led to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act to include sexual orientation as one of the many forms of discrimination that is prohibited in workplaces across California. 

Religious Discrimination

Religious discrimination occurs when you are unfairly treated at work due to your religious beliefs or practices. A common religion-related issue that happens at work is when an employee requests reasonable accommodation or a day off on a religious holiday, but it gets rejected by the employer due to undue hardship.

If that is the case, the employer can refuse to fulfill either request. However, they will need to prove one or more of the following:

• The undue hardship is costly
• The undue hardship may affect work productivity
• The undue hardship may violate the rights of the other employees
• The undue hardship may cause other employees to work on more than their fair share of tasks, which can become a burden on them

If the employer is unable to show proof of undue hardship, the employee may file a religious discrimination claim.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and FEHA protect employees from facing unfair treatment due to their religious beliefs or practices.

Disability Discrimination

If an employer is mistreating you due to your mental or physical disabilities, you may be facing disability discrimination. Some common examples of this type of disability discrimination include:

• Making offensive or negative jokes about an employee’s disability
• Unwelcoming questions or comments made about an employee’s disability
• Refusing to offer reasonable accommodations to a disabled employee
• Refusing to hire an applicant because of their disability

Title VII, FEHA, and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protect employees who qualify as being disabled from disability discrimination.

How Can You Prove Workplace Discrimination?

To prove workplace discrimination, you will need to collect important documentation to help support your claim. Below, we have created a list of essential pieces of evidence you should consider obtaining in order to build a well-constructed argument against the opposing party.

Keep All Documented Forms of Communication

You should preserve all emails, letters, voice messages, and text messages you have received from your employer. These can prove to be crucial evidence to include in your case.

Compare Your Treatment With Your Coworkers

While you are suspecting that your employer may be discriminating against you, you should pay attention to the way they treat your coworkers to get an understanding of whether it is happening to more than just one person in the workplace. 

For instance, a mass layoff occurs and it only affects female employees. This could be identified as a form of gender discrimination. Another example could be an employer who offers job promotions or raises only to white employees. This could be classified as racial discrimination. 

Discovery Documents 

Our discrimination lawyers will obtain your complete employment and pay records. This will allow us to assess all documents related to the discrimination case and examine internal communications between your immediate superior or employer.

Other documents, such as counseling forms or emails between the person who has discriminated against you, can also be requested and examined. These documents can help establish a pattern and timeline of discrimination. 

West Coast Employment Lawyers Is Here to Help

At West Coast Employment Lawyers, our discrimination lawyers are available on a 24/7 basis to offer legal assistance to victims who have faced discriminatory actions by their employers. We run on a contingency-fee basis, meaning that you will only be required to compensate us if we win or settle your case.

To schedule a free consultation, you may reach out to us by calling 213-927-3700, emailing info@westcoastemploymentlawyers.com, or filling out our quick contact form located on the bottom of the page.