Harassment & Discrimination
Not all harassment and discrimination in the workplace grants civil rights to employees against their employers. Below are the legal definitions of unlawful discrimination and unlawful harassment.
Definition of Unlawful Discrimination
California law prohibits employers with at least five or more employees from discriminating against employees on account of race, color, sex, religion, marital status, national origin, ancestry, disability, medical condition, age, sexual orientation, or any other legally-protected classification.
Definition of Unlawful Harassment
Similarly, California employees who work for employers with at least one employee or more have the right to be free of harassing conduct which is committed on account of race, color, sex, religion, marital status, national origin, ancestry, disability, medical condition, age, sexual orientation, or any other legally-protected classification.
Reasonable Steps to Prevent Unlawful Harassment & Discrimination
Employers must take all reasonable steps to prevent the types of harassment and discrimination described in this section from being committed against employees, applicants and independent contractors. These steps should include the following:
- Implementing a written policy prohibiting the types of unlawful harassment & discrimination described in this section;
- Adopting a complaint procedure for employees with complaints of the types of unlawful harassment & discrimination described in this section;
- Providing harassment & discrimination training for all supervisors and managers (applicable to employers with 50 employees or more);
- Conducting immediate investigations into allegations of the types of harassment & discrimination described in this section;
- Taking corrective action where necessary;
- Prohibiting retaliation against employees who legitimately complain of the types of harassment & discrimination described in this section, or against employees who assist in an investigation of this type;
- Granting reasonable accommodations to disabled employees.
No Retaliation
An employer must take all reasonable steps to ensure that no retaliation takes place against any complaining employee or against anyone assisting in an investigation.
Immediate Investigation
Once an employer receives a complaint or has other reason to believe that harassment or discrimination pertaining to race, color, sex, religion, marital status, national origin, ancestry, disability, medical condition, age, sexual orientation has occurred or is occurring, an immediate and reasonable investigation must be commenced.
Failure to conduct an immediate, reasonable investigation or to take the above-described preventative steps may give rise to viable legal claims against a non-compliant employer. These claims typically make available the following damages: Compensatory damages, emotional distress damages, punitive damages, and the reimbursement of reasonable attorney fees and costs.
