Anaheim Employment Lawyers Representing Firefighters

Do I have an employment discrimination claim?

Generally, all Anaheim Fire & Rescue employees, independent contractors, and volunteers can file employment discrimination and other employee rights claims based on specific California and federal laws.

The two main requirements for filing a claim are:

• You must belong to a protected class
• Anaheim Fire & Rescue must negatively affect your employment in some way

Protected class

The California Fair Housing and Employment Act protects the following classes:

• Ancestry and national origin
• Race and color
• Religion and creed
• Mental and physical disability
• Age (40 and over)
• Gender identity and gender expression
• Sex and gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions)
• Sexual orientation
• Medical condition
• Genetic information
• Marital status
• Military or veteran status

Federal discrimination laws such as Title VII and the Americans with Disability Act also protect certain classes. We can explain which law(s) protect your specific identification characteristics.

Adverse employment conditions

At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, we represent firefighters and their support staff when their fire department adversely affects their employment. Some of the adverse conditions we handle include the following:

• Terminating your job
• Not considering your job application even though you have the necessary qualifications
• Not considering you for a promotion
• Not providing the education and job assignments you need to advance
• Failing to provide reasonable workplace accommodations if you have a disability or you are pregnant
• Suspending you
• Harassing you
• Reducing your pay

When can firefighters file a harassment claim in Anaheim?

Fire departments that harass workers who are members of a protected class (race, national origin, religion, and other classes that we describe above) are committing employment discrimination. The California Fair Housing and Employment Act (CFEHA) prohibits harassment of employees, independent contractors, applicants, volunteers, and unpaid interns by any person. Employers must take all reasonable steps to prevent harassment.

The CFEHA also requires that employers such as Anaheim Fire & Rescue that have 50 or more employees develop and implement proper harassment policies and posters that educate employees about their rights.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the federal agency that enforces federal discrimination and harassment laws, provides similar harassment protections.

Hostile workplace harassment

Harassment that creates a hostile work environment generally requires that an employer who should reasonably know that harassment is taking place fails to take corrective steps to stop the harassment.

Harassment that creates a hostile work environment includes verbal communications or physical conduct that is offensive, intimidating, and abusive and prevents the worker from being able to perform their job. You can file a harassment claim even if you are not the subject of the harassment.

Sexual harassment

Our Anaheim firefighter employment lawyers file sexual harassment claims that create a hostile work environment.

The CFEHA applies to “sexual harassment, gender harassment, harassment based on pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, and/or related medical conditions, as well as harassment based on all other characteristics listed above.”

Examples of sexual harassment include unwelcome sexual advances, sexual conversations and jokes, sexual images, sexual messages, leering, sexual gestures, and impeding your movements.

We also file sexual harassment claims known as “quid pro quo harassment.” This type of harassment involves conditioning your employment on sexual conduct, sexual favors, or sexual advances.

How do you help firefighters when fire departments retaliate?

At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, our employment lawyers file retaliation lawsuits against fire departments and authorities when they try to intimidate or punish you in any way if you assert your legal rights, including:

• Filing a discrimination or harassment claim
• Filing for worker’s compensation
• Filing a whistleblower claim or reporting employer fraud
• Requesting medical leave to care for a family member
• Requesting reasonable accommodations if you have a disability or if you are pregnant

What laws protect firefighters from discrimination, harassment, and retaliation in Anaheim?

At McNicholas & McNicholas, we use every federal, state, and Orange County law that protects you. These laws include the following:

• The California Fair Employment and Housing Act(FEHA)
• Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
• The Age Discrimination in Employment Act(ADEA)
• The Americans with Disabilities Act(ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
• The Equal Pay Act of 1963
• The Family Medical Leave Act or the California Family Rights Act
• The Federal False Claims Actand the California False Claims Act, which protect whistleblowers
• The Pregnancy Discrimination Actand the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act
• The Trauma Treatment Act
• The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act

We file claims before the appropriate agencies and courts, such as the following:

• The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
• The California Civil Rights Department (CCRD)
• The Superior Court of Anaheim
• The Southern Division of the Central District of California

What types of employment rights cases do you handle in Anaheim?

At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, we have 35 years of experience and working relationships with financial and other professionals to represent you if you have any of the following employment claims:

• Discrimination
• Harassment
• Retaliation
• Wage and hour benefits
• Executive compensation
• Whistleblower
• Family medical leave benefits
• Wrongful termination claims

These claims depend on the various laws, any collective bargaining agreements that cover you, and any employment contracts you have.

What is the value of a firefighter’s employee rights claim in California?

At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, we demand that you be made “whole” again – which means that you be in the same financial and work position as if your employee rights had not been violated. Our lawyers demand that fire departments pay all your current damages (back compensation) and future damages (front compensation), including:

• Loss of wages, income, insurance coverage, accrued leave and vacation, pension and other retirement benefits, severance pay, and all other financial compensation
• Your emotional suffering and any damage to your reputation
• Damages set forth in a specific statute
• Legal fees and court costs
• Interest
• Punitive damages

Our Anaheim firefighter employment lawyers also seek court orders to address other wrongs, including:

• Rehiring you without loss of seniority
• Granting you a deserved promotion
• Approving your application for hire
• Providing reasonable workplace accommodations

Implementing strong policies and procedures to address discrimination, harassment, and retaliation in the workplace