Newport Beach Employee Rights Lawyers

What types of employees and workers do your Newport Beach employment lawyers represent?

At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, we’ve helped many employees obtain strong recoveries when their employers violate their rights. Our employment lawyers represent employees. We also represent independent contractors and volunteers. Our team represents workers in both the public and private sectors.

Some of the many people we represent include.

• Law enforcement officers. Our lawyers represent police officers, SWAT team officers, bomb squad officers, and sheriff’s deputies who fight crime, help businesses and residents understand their security needs, and provide help when car and other vehicle accidents occur. Our lawyers are ready to help law enforcement officers who work in Newport Beach.
• Firefighters. Our attorneys file employee rights claims on behalf of firefighters and their supporting personnel who put out fires (residences, commercial, and public lands), handle hazardous materials, and provide other types of aid. We’ve represented many firefighters across California.
• First responders. Our Newport Beach employment lawyers represent corrections officers, drug officers, paramedics, EMTs, park rangers, and other Newport Beach workers who provide healthcare aid, security, and other types of essential emergency services.

What types of employment claims do your Newport Beach lawyers handle?

At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, we handle a broad range of employment claims, including the following:

• Discrimination and harassment claims. Employers across California, including Newport Beach, can be held accountable if they adversely affect the employment conditions of their workers – if their workers belong to a protected class (such as race, age, national origin, sex, or disability). We discuss these claims in much more detail below.
• Retaliation claims. Our Newport Beach employment lawyers protect workers who assert their legal rights (or support another worker’s legal rights) by filing retaliation claims against employers who try to discipline or intimidate you because you hold your employer accountable for discrimination, harassment, or other employee rights violations. We discuss retaliation claims below.
• Wage and hour claims. Every dollar counts. Our employment lawyers hold Newport Beach employers accountable if they fail to pay you what they owe you – on time. We assert the various laws and agreements that protect your pay, including the Federal Labor Standards Act, the Equal Pay Act, California law, Orange County regulations, collective bargaining agreements, and any written employment contracts you may have.
• Executive compensation claims. We hold employers accountable to the specific provisions of employment agreements for any executives, chiefs, supervisors, or workers with unique skills who have written contracts. Our City of Newport Beach lawyers demand all your workplace benefits, including salary, bonuses, insurance coverages, stock options, severance pay, retirement benefits, and other contractual benefits.
• Qui tam/whistleblower claims. Employees and other workers who have knowledge that their employer committed governmental fraud can disclose the fraud and receive a share of the recovery, according to the federal and California False Claims Acts. At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, we also file retaliation claims when employers fire, suspend, or adversely affect the employment of workers who disclose fraud and/or file a whistleblower claim.
• Family medical leave claims. Eligible workers (as determined by the federal and California family medical leave laws) can request leave to care for a family member. Our lawyers file retaliation claims when Newport Beach employers retaliate because a first responder or any other worker asks for family medical leave.
• Wrongful termination. Your job is your livelihood and your way of serving the Newport Beach community. We hold employers accountable for your financial damages if your employer fires you in violation of any discrimination or other employment laws or contracts. Our lawyers will discuss your right to reinstatement.

At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, our lawyers represent employees who work for the City of Newport Beach Police Department, the County of Orange Sheriff’s Office, the City of Newport Fire Department, and other Newport Beach employers.

When can I file an employment discrimination claim?

Generally, you can file a discrimination claim in Newport Beach if you are a member of a protected class and your employer adversely affects your employment because of your membership in the protected class.

Protected class

The California Fair Housing and Employment Act (CFHEA) protects the following classes of workers:

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

Many federal discrimination laws, such as Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, also protect specific classes of workers. We can explain which federal or state law protects you.

Adverse employment conditions

Adverse employment conditions include the following:

• Termination of your employment
• Denial of a deserved promotion or pay raise
• Failure to provide the education and training you need
• Failure to evaluate your job application
• Reassignments to less desirable work locations
• Less desirable work assignments
• Reducing your pay
• Failure to provide reasonable workplace accommodations if you have a disability or a pregnancy

When can I file an employment harassment claim?

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the CFEHA protect members of a protected class from workplace harassment that the employer should reasonably know about and fails to stop. Our Newport Beach employment lawyers file employment harassment claims when either of the following types of harassment occurs:

• Hostile work environment harassment. We file this type of harassment claim if your workplace environment is abusive, offensive, or intimidating or if the harassment prevents you from doing your job. Workplace harassment includes verbal conduct, such as offensive jokes, comments, and images, as well as physical conduct, such as touching you without your consent or blocking your movement. Offensive sexual harassment that creates a hostile workplace environment includes leering, sexual conversations, sexual advances, and any other verbal or physical sexual conduct.
• Quid pro quo harassment. Our Newport Beach employment lawyers file this type of sexual harassment claim if your employer or anyone in a position of authority conditions a job, a promotion, or any other workplace condition on sexual favors or sexual advances.

When can I file an employment retaliation claim?

Your employer cannot punish you because you assert your employment rights. There are laws and court decisions that protect workers from employer retaliation. Our Newport Beach employment lawyers file retaliation claims when your employer adversely affects your employment (including firing you) because you do any of the following on your behalf or on behalf of another worker:

• File a discrimination, harassment, or retaliation claim
• File a workers’ compensation claim
• File a qui tam/whistleblower claim
• Refuse sexual advances
• Refuse to comply with discrimination or harassment at work
• Request reasonable workplace accommodations if you have a disability or if you are pregnant
• Request family medical leave

What employment laws protect workers in Newport Beach?

Our employment lawyers understand the full range of federal and state laws that protect workers. Some of the many laws we assert on behalf of workers include the following:

California law:

• California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act(FEHA)
• The California False Claims Act
• California Family Rights 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 Equal Pay Act of 1963
• Federal False Claims Act
• Family Medical Leave Act
• The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act
• The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA)

How do you fight for Newport Beach employee rights victims?

Our Newport Beach employment lawyers start by reviewing your claim with you and explaining your rights. At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, we take additional steps, including:

• Questioning everyone who has knowledge of your claim, including your employer, supervisors, and coworkers.
• Requesting every relevant formal document, such as your work evaluations and other documents, that are in the control of your employer.
• Assessing all your damages.
• Working with experts when necessary, such as statistical experts, financial experts, and vocational experts.
• Determining whether to file your claim in state or federal court.
• Negotiating with your employer and their insurance carriers and defense lawyers.
• Arguing your case before the appropriate agencies and courts, which include:
  • California Civil Rights Department (CCRD)
  • S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission(EEOC)
  • Superior Court of Orange County
  • Southern Division of the Central District of California

What damages can courts award for violations of my employee rights in California?

We demand that you be made whole again – that you receive the compensation and job position you deserve. We demand the following compensation for City of Newport Beach employees, depending on their type of claim, including:

• Your financial losses, including back pay, future/front pay, insurance coverage, and other types of compensation
• Seniority benefits
• Pension and other retirement benefits
• Emotional distress and compensation for any damage to your reputation
• Executive compensation benefits
• Statutory damages
• Legal fees, interest, and court costs
• Punitive damages for malicious conduct

We also request that the judge assigned to your case enter court orders, where the law permits, that direct your employer to reinstate you, grant a promotion, review your application, provide the training you need, and provide reasonable workplace accommodations (for workers with a disability or who are pregnant.

The judge may also require your employer to develop and implement policies and procedures to prevent future discrimination, harassment, and retaliation.