Sacramento Workplace Retaliation Attorney
Were You Punished for Exercising Your Workplace Rights? You May Have a Retaliation Claim
At Newman Law Group, LLP, our Sacramento workplace retaliation attorneys are passionate and experienced advocates for employee rights. No one should face adverse employment action for reporting discrimination, complaining about harassment, or exercising a protected workplace right. If you or your loved one faced retaliation from your employer, we are here to help you get justice. For a strictly confidential, no-strings-attached initial consultation with a California employment law attorney, please contact our law firm today.
What is Retaliation?
As an employee, you have important legal rights. Your ability to access those rights must be protected. Retaliation occurs when an employer unlawfully punishes an employee because that employee exercised a legally protected right. Retaliation is illegal. Unfortunately, it remains a persistent problem. The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) notes that nearly half of all employment law complaints involved allegations of retaliation.
Know the State and Federal Employment Laws that Prohibit Retaliation
Employees have rights under a wide array of state and federal employment laws. As a general rule, these employment regulations tend to prohibit retaliation. In other words, workers are entitled to exercise their rights under the law without facing any type of retribution (punishment) from their employer. Some specific examples of state and federal laws that prohibit retaliation against workers include:
- Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964;
- Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA);
- Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA); and
- California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA).
Contact Newman Law Group, LLP via an online form or by calling us at (916) 352-3224 today to protect the ones that you love. Our Sacramento elder abuse attorneys are ready to help you.
Understanding the Elements of a Retaliation Claim
Employers in California have considerable discretion to make their own personnel decisions. They can decide who to hire, promote, punish, and terminate. However, employers cannot treat a worker less favorably for an illegal reason, including retaliation. Here are three specific things that you need to prove to bring a workplace retaliation claim in California:
- You engaged in a protected activity. Some examples include: Reporting discrimination, complaining about sexual harassment, and filing a wage and hour complaint.
- You faced adverse employment action. An adverse employment action is any unfavorable employment action—from suspension to demotion to outright termination.
- You were punished because of the protected activity. This is the key element in retaliation claims in California. You must prove that the employer had retaliatory animus.
Although exceptions exist, employers in California are broadly aware that retaliation is prohibited. As a consequence, few employers openly admit to illegally punishing workers. Instead, employers are far more likely to come up with a pretextual (false) reason to justify an adverse action. Your case should be thoroughly investigated by an experienced Sacramento employment attorney.
What is Adverse Employment Action?
Proving retaliatory action by an employer requires establishing that you were subject to an adverse employment action. Broadly defined, an adverse action is simply any unfavorable personnel action taken by your employer. Adverse employment actions can come in a wide range of different forms. Some examples of adverse employment actions in Sacramento include:
- Reduction in pay/benefits;
- Less desirable job assignments;
- Suspension;
- Refusal to promote;
- General workplace harassment; and
- Termination.
An Overview of Remedies for Workplace Retaliation
A number of different remedies are available for employees in California who were subject to illegal retaliation by an employer. It is imperative that you pursue every remedy that is available to you under state and federal law. Retaliation should not be allowed to stand unchallenged. Depending on the circumstances of your case, you may be entitled to:
- Back pay or front pay;
- A promotion or a raise;
- Reinstatement; and
- Compensation for emotional distress.
It should be noted that you still have the right to pursue any underlying claim. For example, imagine that you reported sexual harassment to your employer. A few weeks later, you were fired from your position. A worker in this scenario would have two separate employment law claims — a claim for the initial sexual harassment and a claim for the retaliation.
What to Do if You Suspect Unlawful Retaliation By an Employer in California
Were you punished by an employer in California after you engaged in a legally protected activity? You may have been subject to illegal retaliation. It is imperative that you take action to protect your rights and interests. Here are three key steps to take if you suspect retaliation in Sacramento:
- Document What Happened: Take a moment to write down everything that has happened to your so far. Further, preserve any relevant documentation related to the underlying matter or to the retaliation.
- Be Proactive: Employment law claims—including retaliation claims—are subject to some of the most strict statutes of limitations. You need to act quickly to protect yourself.
- Get Professional Support: Retaliation claims are notoriously complex. Professional guidance and support can make a difference. Our Sacramento employment attorneys are standing by, ready to help you navigate the process.
Employees Can Rely on Our Sacramento, CA Retaliation Attorneys
For an employee, there are few things more difficult to deal with than punishment for exercising your most basic workplace rights. An employer in California can be held liable for unlawfully retaliating against an employee. At Newman Law Group, LLP, our legal team has extensive experience in navigating state and federal retaliation laws. We are ready to work proactively to protect your interests. More specifically, our Sacramento employer retaliation attorneys are ready to:
- Listen to your story and explain your rights and options;
- Investigate the retaliation and underlying employment law violation;
- Handle any legal paperwork and negotiations with your employer; and
- Take whatever action is necessary to help you secure the best results.
Contact Our Sacramento Retaliation Attorneys Today
Our Sacramento employment law attorneys have the legal and professional expertise that you can trust. If you or someone you know was subject to illegal retaliation from an employer, we can help. We handle workplace retaliation claims in Sacramento and throughout the surrounding region in North Central California.
Call Newman Law Group, LLP now at (916) 352-3224 or contact us online to set up your strictly confidential appointment with an attorney.
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Dan genuinely cares about the elderly and disabled
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They were there for me throughout the process
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We were honored to have his representation
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Our Victories
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$1,500,000 Neglect Case
After a critical two months where our client was not bathed and multiple changes of condition went uncommunicated, unreported, and uncared for, she was ambulanced out to an Emergency Room, where her doctors and family were shocked to find that she had a stage IV sacral decubitus ulcer.
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$1,300,000 Neglect Case
The client in this case is an adult who is developmentally disabled, bedridden, and unable to speak or move independently. The intermediate care facility where she resided neglected their responsibility to ensure her safety, well-being, and necessary medical attention that she required. As a result, the client suffered a Stage IV wound.
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$1,000,000 Nursing Home Abuse Case
Unbeknownst to prospective residents and their families, this defendant RCFE chain was willing to systematically violate laws and its own policies designed to protect vulnerable elders. Willing to admit scores of profitable, high need residents (such as our client), and leave them at the mercy of a few unqualified, untrained and overburdened caregivers.
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$875,000 Abandonment Case
Through exhaustive investigation, we found that our client’s death was not the result of a few isolated mistakes by care-givers. Rather, it was the result of this corporate facility’s policies prioritizing occupancy and revenue, while ignoring staff training, staff supervision, and the quality of care being delivered.
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$775,000 Resident-On-Resident Abuse Case
While eating dinner at a Skilled Nursing Facility, our client was confronted by another resident who punched him, resulting in our client’s tragic death. The other resident had resided at the facility for five months, and over the course of those five months had engaged in numerous altercations with other residents, including two altercations that occurred in the 24-hour period before he assaulted and killed our client.
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$750,000 Lack of Proper Care Case
During our client’s roughly ten-week stay at a skilled nursing facility, he would suffer 8 falls, lose twenty (20) pounds, and develop an unstageable left heel pressure ulcer and a stage II coccyx pressure ulcer due to the facility’s reckless neglect. He was transferred to the hospital, where he was found severely dehydrated, his left heel wound required debridement for eschar and gangrene, and for the first time, a stage II coccyx ulcer was identified.
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$678,000 Financial Abuse Case
Our 84-year-old client was the victim of financial elder abuse related to a number of transactions, including the purchase of a home. The Defendant's real estate agents, lender, and escrow company all failed to protect our client throughout the process of purchasing the home, which was orchestrated by a woman who fraudulently siphoned off our client’s entire life savings.