Boucher Law

Employment Discrimination, Harassment, Retaliation — Unpaid Wages and Overtime — Defamation — Contract Litigation

Employment Law  You cannot be denied employment, housing, leaves of absence, or wages because you identify as LGBT, appear as a certain gender, are male or female, are aged over 40, or have a disability or medical condition. (Click title for details.)

Wages and Overtime  You must be paid all wages due to you — including overtime — at the time they were earned. If your employer claims you're "exempt," California law may prove otherwise.

Defamation  If someone injures you by accident or on purpose, you may be entitled to compensation under the law.

Contract Litigation  If someone backs out of an agreement or promise they made with you, you may be able to enforce it as a contract in court.

In all these cases, the law protects you, but can be an impenetrable barrier. You need an experienced attorney on your side to help you make the right decisions and to fight for you.

Discrimination — Harassment — Retaliation

Am I in a protected category? California and federal law protects you if you are,

  • Gay, lesbian, bisexual, or straight.
  • Transgendered or identifying as a gender differing from your birth.
  • Aged over 40 years.
  • Female or male.
  • In a nontraditional religion.
  • Suffering a debilitating medical condition.
  • Limited in your life activities because of a disability.
  • Reporting or refusing to engage in unlawful conduct, unpaid wages, or illegal practices.

What kind of behavior is discrimination? Discrimination occurs when your employer knowingly imposes some adverse employment action on you because of one of these categories.

How do harassment and retaliation differ from discrimination? These are all related claims and which one applies depends on the facts of your case. Discrimination usually refers to differing treatment between the protected category and its counterpart. Harassment usually means treating someone poorly because of their protected status. Retaliation usually means targeting individuals in the protected group after they have asserted their rights.

What is an adverse employment action? The courts have held that termination, demotion, reduction in wages or benefits, reassignment to work beneath your education or position, and falsely negative performance evaluations which might affect future promotions are all adverse employment practices.

What does "because of" mean? In these cases, you must demonstrate to the court that the employer based its decision to impose the unlawful employment practice on you because of the protected category. Ideally, this is proven with direct evidence where your employer told you that was the case. However, you can also prove this connection with indirect evidence such as timing, suspiciously poor performance reviews, failure to follow internal procedures, and abrupt changes in supervisory or other employment practices.

What are the first steps? The first thing to do is to speak with an attorney as soon as possible after the discriminatory, harassing, or retaliatory actions before they escalate. Early intervention may prevent the ultimate adverse employment action. Your attorney will advise you about how to prove your case and how to approach your employer for the best possible outcomes.

What can I do right now? Call me or fill out my client intake survey so that we can begin the conversation regarding your rights and options.

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