Carlsbad

It can be upsetting to have to go up against your Carlsbad employer in a wage and hour, discrimination or whistleblower lawsuit. Often litigation is stressful. However, most people depend on their jobs for their family’s survival and well-being. It is crucial, then, to retain seasoned Carlsbad employment law attorneys to fight for your rights and interests in an employment lawsuit. Call the seasoned Carlsbad employment lawyers of Calderone Law Firm. We have years of experience to rely upon when fighting for the best outcome in your case.

You may not be sure whether the negative action taken against you by your employer counts as discrimination, harassment, or retaliation. Not all negative actions or consequences meted out by an employer constitute actionable discrimination. However, you can sue for employment discrimination if your employer takes an adverse action against you because you have a trait that is protected under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, or the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), among other statutes. FEHA tends to provide more protection than federal laws do. This is partly because it protects workers when they work for small companies (those with at least 5 employees) and federal laws protect midsize to large employers. FEHA also protects many more traits including color, race, ancestry, national origin, religion, creed, medical condition, disability, genetic information, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender expression, gender identity, marital status, military or veteran status, and reproductive health decision-making.

Reporting an employer for misconduct or a legal violation can be taxing. However, if you do so with a reasonable belief that your employer violated the law or public policy, you receive protection as a whistleblower. Under California and federal laws, employers are forbidden from retaliating against their employees as long as they reasonably believe they are reporting their employer’s legal violation. Retaliatory actions include termination, firing, layoffs, demotions, failure to promote, unfair performance reviews, and denial of access to needed training programs. Whether you work in golf, life sciences, information technology, clean technology, tourism or another industry, you’re entitled to protection against retaliation for blowing the whistle on your Carlsbad employer.

If you are a nonexempt employee, the law provides you with significant protection in connection with minimum wage, overtime, rest and meal breaks, and uniforms. Not all companies abide by the law with regard to these protections; sometimes violations are committed intentionally while in other cases, they may be mere oversights or the result of failing to consult with an attorney. Wage theft can occur when employers misclassify nonexempt employees as independent contractors or exempt employees, which means they aren’t protected with regard to how much they are paid. It can also occur when an employer asks a worker to work off-the clock. For example, if the golf course where you work as a caddy tells you that time you spend putting away equipment doesn’t count as time worked and doesn’t pay you for it, you might have a claim for wage theft. Often the amount of wage theft is small, but you and your coworkers may be able to join together to sue your shared employer in a class action. Class action lawsuits need to be certified, a complex process. It’s important to retain seasoned class action attorneys like those of the Calderone Law Firm to represent you.

Retaining a seasoned Carlsbad employment attorney can level the playing field in litigation against your employer for wage and hour violations, whistleblower retaliation, or discrimination. It can reduce your stress and improve your odds of achieving the best results in your case. Our founder, Vincent Calderone, can use his more than 20 years of experience representing workers in litigation to help you. Please contact us online or call us at (424) 348-8290.