Workplace Discrimination in California

California law makes it illegal to treat you worse at work because of who you are — in hiring, firing, pay, promotions, or everyday working conditions. These protections are broader than federal law, filing a complaint is free, and you do not need a lawyer to start.

What counts as discrimination

The Fair Employment and Housing Act (Gov. Code 12940(a)) says an employer cannot refuse to hire you, fire you, pay you less, pass you over for a promotion or training, or treat you worse in any term or condition of your job because of a protected characteristic. Two honest points. First, the law does not require fairness. A boss can be rude, play favorites, or make bad decisions and still be legal. What is illegal is worse treatment because of who you are. Second, employers almost never announce the real reason. These cases are usually proven with timing, comments, comparisons to coworkers, and paperwork — so write down what happened, when it happened, and who saw it.

Who is protected

The protected list includes — and this is not the complete list:

• Race, including hair texture and protective hairstyles such as braids, locs, and twists (the CROWN Act, Gov. Code 12926)
• Religious creed, color, national origin, and ancestry
• Physical or mental disability, medical condition, and genetic information
• Reproductive health decisions (for example, using birth control)
• Marital status; sex, including pregnancy; gender, gender identity, and gender expression; sexual orientation
• Age (40 and older) and military or veteran status
• Legal cannabis use off the job and away from the workplace, including drug tests that only find old, non-impairing traces (Gov. Code 12954 — with exceptions, such as construction trades and jobs that require a federal background check). No one has the right to be high at work.

Disability and pregnancy: you can ask for changes

If you have a physical or mental disability, your employer must give you a reasonable accommodation — a real change, like modified duties, equipment, or a schedule adjustment — unless it would cause the business serious hardship (Gov. Code 12940(m)). The employer also has to sit down with you, promptly and in good faith, to figure out what would work. The law calls this the interactive process (Gov. Code 12940(n)), and ignoring your request can itself be a violation. Pregnancy has its own protections: reasonable accommodation on your provider's advice, transfer to less strenuous work when feasible, and up to four months of leave if pregnancy or childbirth keeps you from working (Gov. Code 12945). Ask in writing and keep a copy.

Wrongful termination, in plain terms

Most California jobs are "at will," which means you can be fired for almost any reason — or no reason at all. That surprises people, so here is the honest line: a firing is legally "wrongful" when the real reason is illegal. That includes firing you over any protected characteristic above, and firing you for complaining about discrimination, asking for an accommodation, or backing up a coworker's complaint. Retaliation is illegal even if the original complaint does not win, as long as you complained in good faith.