Knowledgeable San Diego County Employment Law Attorneys

You may not know whether you have been subject to a wage and hour violation or employment discrimination. The law can be complex and challenging, and you may feel intimidated by your employer. It’s important to talk to a seasoned plaintiff’s attorney if you think you might have been mistreated in the workplace. Whether you have a discrimination, harassment, whistleblower, or wage and hour lawsuit, you should discuss your case with a tenacious San Diego County employment lawyer who can help decide the best course of action. In some cases, litigation is appropriate; in others, it may make more sense to resolve the case short of that. If we represent you, the Calderone Law Firm will use insights gathered over 20 years to pursue justice on your behalf.

The California Fair Employment Housing Act (FEHA) provides you with protection against discrimination, harassment, and retaliation, so long as your employer has at least 5 employees. Additionally, you are protected against sexual harassment no matter the size of your employer; even if you are the only employee in a workplace, you should not face harassment on the basis of sex. You may be uncertain about whether what you’ve experienced counts as discrimination. In San Diego County, discrimination happens if your employer takes an adverse step against you based on a trait that is protected under FEHA, federal law, or local law. Adverse employment actions can can happen in connection with job applications, hirings, interviews, training, promotions, demotions, or firing. For example, if you were demoted in a life sciences job because you are Mormon, you would have a religious discrimination claim. Similarly, if you are gay, and your boss at a travel agency is no longer willing to train you for a customer-facing position due to your sexual orientation, you may have a basis to sue for sexual orientation discrimination.

Under California Labor Code section 1102.5, you are protected against whistleblower retaliation in a workplace where you are an employee. Whistleblower retaliation occurs when an employer takes a negative action against you due to you reporting the employer’s illegal conduct or misconduct. You are protected against this retaliation and can pursue a claim if you reveal information about the illegal conduct or misconduct to an authority figure when you have a reasonable basis to believe the information reveals a state, federal or local statutory or regulatory violation.

Under California labor laws, you receive notable protections as a nonexempt employee. You are protected against violations of wage and hour laws, including those that relate to minimum wage, overtime, rest and meal breaks, uniforms or equipment. You won’t receive the same protection as a gig worker or exempt employee. However, you should be aware that an employer may misclassify you as one of the latter in order to avoid providing basic protections.

In some cases, the potential damages in a wage and hour lawsuit are quite small. In such cases, when there are multiple employees who are similarly situated in their workplace, it may be appropriate to file a class action lawsuit. For example, if you were occasionally asked to work over your lunch break, so that your employer wouldn’t have to pay overtime, and other workers at the hospital where you work faced a similar condition, you might have a basis to recover damages in a class action.

Call the seasoned San Diego County lawyers of Calderone Law Firm if you believe you may have been subject to whistleblower retaliation, discrimination, harassment, or wage and hour violations. Our founder, Vincent Calderone, has more than 20 years of experience representing employees in cities like Carlsbad, Chula Vista, Escondido, Oceanside, and San Diego. Please contact us online or call us at (424) 348-8290.