Escondido

Whether you work in construction or education, you likely find a dispute with your Escondido employer anxiety producing. If you experience discrimination, harassment, whistleblower retaliation, or wage and hour violations, it can be vital to protect your interests by consulting with a seasoned Escondido employment law attorney. Every case requires a different approach, but knowledgeable legal counsel can counsel you and work to get the best outcome. The Calderone Law Firm has 20 years of experience that it can marshal to protect your interests.

California and federal law protect nonexempt employees when it comes to how and when they are paid. Wage and hour laws cover such matters as minimum wage, overtime, rest and meal breaks, uniforms, and equipment. Unfortunately, some employers don’t know their obligation to their employees or intentionally ignore the laws that protect employees. One way in which employers violate their duties is by misclassifying workers as independent contractors or exempt employees; these two classes are not protected as closely as nonexempt employees. For example, an independent contractor is not paid overtime, whereas overtime must be paid to any nonexempt employee who works more than 40 hours in a workweek or more than 8 hours in a single work day.

Whether you’ve experienced wage theft or another wage and hour violation, you may find it difficult to retain an attorney if the potential damages are small. However, you can band together with any similarly situated employees in your workplace and bring a class action lawsuit with the help of a seasoned attorney. The process of seeking class action damages is complex; it requires certification. You should call Calderone Law Firm for a consultation.

You have remedies if you suffered employment discrimination, harassment or retaliation. Discrimination occurs whenever an employer takes an adverse action against you based on a trait protected by federal, state, or local laws. In most cases, you’ll be more protected by the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), which protects those who work for companies that have at least 5 employees. Under FEHA, you are protected against sexual harassment even if your employer has only one employee—you. In contrast, federal laws provide protection only to those who work for midsize or large companies.

FEHA protects a wide range of traits including color, race, ancestry, national origin, religion, creed, disability, medical condition, genetic information, sexual orientation, sex, gender, gender identity, marital status, military status and reproductive health decision making. For example, if you were demoted because your private school employer found out you had an abortion, you may have a claim for reproductive health discrimination. Likewise, if you were denied training you needed for your job because your employer learned you’re Mormon, you may have grounds for a religious discrimination claim.

Like some employers in other cities, certain Escondido employers commit crimes or perpetrate other illegal conduct. Employees are well-positioned to know about these illegal acts; accordingly, the law protects an employee against employer retaliation for reporting the illegal acts or misconduct to the authorities or even to those with authority over them in the workplace. It is normal to be worried about reporting your employer, but so long as you have a reasonable belief that your employer has committed illegal acts or misconduct, you are protected against retaliation.

A wide array of negative actions can count as retaliation including firings, layoffs, failure to promote, demotions, denials of needed trainings, and unfair performance reviews. It can be wise to seek an experienced attorney’s counsel even before you make a report to the authorities

If you are facing on-the-job discrimination, harassment, whistleblower retaliation or wage and hour violations, it’s important to secure a consultation with our seasoned Escondido employment lawyers. Our founder, Vincent Calderone, can put to work for you more than 20 years of experience representing employees. Please contact us online or call us at (424) 348-8290.