Fresno Wrongful Termination Attorney

Wrongful Termination Law Firm in Fresno

Stephen Danz & Associates has an established footprint in Fresno with a focus exclusively on Employment Law and Wrongful Termination. Our most common cases involve wrongful termination on the basis of our clients’ race, color, sex, national origin or religion. In California, employers do not have to provide a reason when they terminate employees since our state has “at will” employment.

However, just because companies have the right to terminate employees for no reason does not allow them to terminate employees for an illegal reason. One of these unlawful reasons is firing an employee based on his or her belonging to a protected class within skin color, religion, ethnicity, sex/gender, race or his/her complaints regarding discrimination due to those traits.

California Laws Prohibit Wrongful Termination Based on Protected Status

In California, the two most pertinent discrimination laws are the state’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”) and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”). Under both FEHA and Title VII, a California-based employer may not terminate an employee due to the employee’s opposing of discrimination, or the employer’s discrimination due to employee membership in a protected group such as age (over 40), request for reasonable accommodation due to disability, gender, marital status, religion, race, sexual orientation, pregnancy, national origin, or medical condition.

The law protects applicants, employees as well as former employees from unlawful discrimination. There are a number of other negative employer actions that are prohibited under wrongful termination. They include suspensions, unequal discipline, unfair performance review, demotion, non-promotion, negative references, adverse job responsibilities, pay reduction, refusal to hire, lay-off or discharge. If any of these instances occurred to you, contact us at the Form on this page or call us for a free consultation at 877-789-9707.

Wrongful Termination Based on Your Employer’s Retaliation

Employers are not allowed to negatively treat employees based on their complaints about discrimination in the workplace. In addition, employers may not adversely treat an employee (or his/her family) for complaining about sexual harassment or any other type of harassment or discrimination, violations of law by the company, or even reasonably perceived violations or illegal activities. These are all considered “protected activity.”

One of the most common examples of employers who abuse this process is that a short time after an employee complains or serves as a witness for an enforcement agency, he or she is terminated. It is important to remember that even though your discrimination case is not proven, if you were retaliated against for filing a discrimination case, your employer will independently be found guilty of the retaliation as that case may stand on itself.

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Wrongful Termination Based on Your Right to Report Employer Discrimination

It is unlawful for employers to terminate an employee for exercising his or her right under such laws as California’s Pregnancy Laws, Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, the Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) or a disability that you have, had, or perceived to have (Americans with Disabilities Act – ADA).

For example, if you are terminated because your employer perceived that you are pregnant, that is enough for a cause of action even if you’re not pregnant. To qualify under these laws, the employer need only have 5 or more employees. A recent amendment to these laws expanded their reach and now includes almost all California employers. The federal laws require 15 or more employees even though the California ones only require 5 employees. This is an example of how complex this area of law is, and why it is vital that you contact an attorney right away. There are also strict statutes of limitations within which one must bring the Complaint. Let our attorneys guide and fight for you. Contact us via the Form on this page or by calling our office below.

Public Policy Violation
California companies may not wrongfully terminate employees in violation of public policies such as when employees complain about being harassed at work, take reasonable time off to vote, serve on jury duty, perform military service, or take the allowable bonding time or pregnancy leave under the FMLA and/or California’s Family Rights Act.

Discrimination

A California-based employer may not terminate an employee due to the employees opposing of discrimination, or employer discrimination due to employee membership in a protected group such as age (over 40), request for reasonable accommodation due to disability, gender, marital status, religion, race, sexual orientation, pregnancy, national origin, or medical condition.

Title VII and California’s FEHA). Our specialized employee-side attorneys review the case with you and remain involved each step of the way until resolution. Often, this involves a review of the facts, request and analysis of the evidence through subpoena, deposition of your supervisor and those involved in the decision-making, as well as many other resources that are well beyond the capability of smaller law firms.

Retaliation
An employer may not retaliate against an employee who complains about discrimination or harassment (either against the employee or another employee) whether the claim is legitimate or the employee merely had a reasonable basis that such conduct is unlawful. Employers also may not retaliate against employees who decline to violate state or federal statutes, regulations, or other laws.

Whistleblower Violation

A California employer may not fire an employee based on the employee’s complaints about the employer’s violation of laws, participation in whistleblowing about an employer’s illegal conduct, or aiding the government in litigation against the employer. This defense also protects employees who are whistleblowers for another employee as long as the whistleblower had reason to believe an employer engaged in fraudulent, illegal, or unethical behavior.

For any questions about the above information, or to consult a specialized Wrongful Termination law attorney about your case in Fresno, call the employment law offices of Stephen Danz & Associates today for a free no obligation consultation at 877-789-9707.