Monterey Employment Lawyers Representing First Responders

What types of employment claims do your Monterey lawyers handle for first responders?

Our Monterey employment lawyers have 35 years of experience fighting for the:

• Civil rights of employees: Judging of employees based on their identity characteristics and not their work skills.
• Employment rights of employees: Holding employers to their duty to comply with federal and state employment laws, written employment contracts, and collective bargaining agreements.

We represent first responders in the following types of cases:

• Discrimination and harassment claims: At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, we file racial, sexual, and other types of discrimination and harassment claims for members of a protected class when employers adversely affect their employment or make working intolerable. We discuss discrimination lawsuits and harassment lawsuits in more detail below.
• Retaliation claims: Our Monterey employment lawyers for first responders file retaliation claims when employers punish or intimidate workers who assert their legal rights or support another worker’s claim. We discuss retaliation lawsuits in more detail below.
• Wrongful termination lawsuits: Employers generally cannot fire you if you belong to a protected class based on class characteristics, you assert your rights, or if you have a written employment contract or a collective bargaining agreement that governs when and how your job can be terminated.
• Executive compensation claims: We represent police chiefs, fire chiefs, and other executives who have written employment contracts when employers breach the terms of those contracts. We demand that employers of first responders who have written contracts pay the salary, insurance coverage, retirement benefits, severance pay, and other benefits of the contract.
• Wage and hour claims: Our Monterey employment attorneys hold employers of first responders to their duty to pay your wages in compliance with the Federal Labor Standards Act, the Equal Pay Act, California and Monterey County pay laws, and any written contracts such as collective bargaining agreements.
• Whistleblower claims: First responders have the right to disclose acts of fraud by their employers. At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, we file qui tam claims (claims where you could receive a percentage of a recovery) and retaliation claims if your employer retaliates because you disclose their fraud.

What are the grounds for filing a discrimination claim in Monterey?

You can file a discrimination claim if you are a member of a protected class and if your employer adversely affects your job because of your protected class status.

Protected class status

Various laws including Title VII of the US Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the California Fair Housing and Employment Act define which classes of people deserve discrimination protection. We can explain if you qualify. Protected classes generally include the following identity characteristics:

• Race, national origin, or color
• Sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, and gender expression
• Physical or mental disability
• Religion/creed
• Age (40 or older)
• Pregnancy
• Medical condition
• Genetic information
• Military or veteran status
• Marital status

Adverse employment conditions

Monterey employers such as the Monterey Police Department and the Monterey Fire Department adversely affect your employment if they:

• Terminate your employment
• Deny you a promotion or a raise that you deserve
• Refuse to evaluate your job application
• Fail to train you
• Give other workers who are not a member of your protected class, such as a younger worker, better job assignments
• Refuse to provide reasonable workplace accommodations if you have a disability or you are pregnant

What are the grounds for filing a harassment claim in Monterey?

At McNicholas & McNicholas, we’ve handled numerous cases where employers harass their workers. We file harassment claims if your employer participates in or should know of the harassment – and fails to take steps to stop the harassment.

Not only is harassment in the workplace illegal, but harassment between first responders is also inexcusable because first responders routinely need to rely on each worker. Most first responder help requires teamwork. If a worker cannot trust another worker, that’s a major problem.

Our Monterey first responder employment lawyers file harassment claims on behalf of employees, independent contractors, volunteers, and other workers. We hold employers to their duty to comply with federal harassment laws and the California Fair Housing and Employment Act (CFEHA). Federal and state harassment laws generally apply to workers who belong to a protected class.

We file harassment claims that involve the following types of harassment:

• Hostile workplace environment harassment. We file claims for workplace harassment that is hostile to the point where it prevents you from doing your job, offends you, is intolerable, or is abusive. Examples include verbal communications that are derogatory, offensive jokes, hurtful videos and photographs, upsetting messages, and unwelcome physical contact. Sexual harassment that creates a hostile workplace environment includes leering, sexual advances, sexual conversations, and sexual images.
• Quid pro quo harassment. We file quid pro quo harassment if your employment or someone who controls your job conditions bases your employment on sexual advances or sexual favors.

What are the grounds for filing a retaliation claim in Monterey?

You have the right to file complaints with your employer, with federal and state agencies, and with the appropriate courts. You have the right to participate in investigations of discrimination and testify for another worker.

Our Monterey employment lawyers for first responders file lawsuits when employers violate your employment and other legal rights, including:

• The right to file a discrimination, harassment, or retaliation claim.
• The right to file a qui tam/whistleblower claim
• The right to seek eligible family medical leave
• The right to seek workers’ compensation benefits
• The right to seek enforcement of your employment contract
• The right of disabled and pregnant workers to seek reasonable workplace accommodations
• The right to assert other legal rights for yourself or someone else

Many of our employment claims for first responders involve a combination of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation claims.

Which workers qualify as “first responders?”

Our Monterey employment lawyers represent all types of first responders, including the following:

• Law enforcement officers — police officers and sheriff’s deputies, bomb squad members, and SWAT officers
• Firefighters
• Correction officers
• Drug officials
• Paramedics, EMTs, and medevac operators
• Public works employees
• Park rangers
• Court officials
• School resource officers
• Emergency telecommunications workers

What California and federal laws protect first responders in Monterey?

We use every law that protects your employment rights. These laws include:

California laws:

• California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act(CFEHA)
• California Family Rights Act
• California False Claims Act

Federal laws:

• Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
• The Americans with Disabilities Act(ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
• The Age Discrimination in Employment Act(ADEA)
• The Family and Medical Leave Act
• The Equal Pay Act, which requires that women and men receive equal pay for equal work
• The Pregnancy Discrimination Actand the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act
• The Federal False Claims Act
• The Trauma Treatment Act
• The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act

How do you assert my rights when Monterey employers violate those rights?

We file employment complaints with the following agencies and courts:

Agencies:

• The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
• The California Civil Rights Department (CCRD)

Courts:

• Superior Court of Monterey County in California
• US District Court for the Northern District of California

Our Monterey employment lawyers fight for first responders in the following ways. We:

• Review your employment concerns
• Explain your rights
• Work with investigators, vocational experts, first responder professionals, and financial experts
• Formally question your employers, supervisors, and others who know about your employment claim
• File your claim with the appropriate agencies and courts
• Itemize and verify all your damages
• Discuss settlements with your employer, their defense lawyers, and their insurance carriers
• Work with the agencies that investigate discrimination and harassment claims
• Argue your case in court before judges and juries

We’ve tried hundreds of cases to jury verdicts.

What damages can I receive for my California employment claim?

At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, we demand that employers for first responders pay you for all damages to date and future damages, depending on the type of claim you have, including:

• Financial damages:
  • Loss of wages, overtime, and other pay
  • Loss of insurance coverage
  • Loss of seniority
  • Loss of accrued vacation and leave
  • Loss of executive compensation benefits
  • Your emotional trauma and damage to your reputation
  • Attorney fees
  • Statutory damages
  • Punitive damages for unconscionable conduct
• Injunctive relief:
  • Job reinstatement
  • Fair consideration of your application or request for promotion
  • Reasonable workplace accommodations
  • Orders that direct your employer to create policies and procedures to prevent further discrimination and harassment

Do you have a Monterey first responder employment lawyer near me?

McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP meets with first responders at our office, located at 10866 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 1400, Los Angeles, 90024. We also speak with first responders remotely by phone and through online applications.

First responders protect Monterey. Our employment lawyers fight to protect you.

Get help from our Monterey first responder lawyers today

At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, we understand how devastating it is when employers judge workers on their personal identity traits instead of their ability to help the people of Monterey. We are respected by former first responder clients and the legal community for our preparation, tenacity, and record of accomplishments. Call us or complete our contact form today to schedule a consultation. We are ready to help you now.