Bay Area Employment Law Blog
Could sexual harassment among surgeons put patients at risk?
Between April and July of 2017, researchers sent an anonymous survey to members of the Association of Women Surgeons (AWS) and the American College of Surgeons (ACS) asking questions about sexual harassment within their profession in the prior 12-month period. On one...
Migraines and workplace discrimination
"I have a migraine," you tell your boss. Your boss rolls her eyes and says, "I get terrible headaches, too. Take some Advil." Except a migraine isn't a headache -- although it (usually) makes your head hurt. A migraine is actually a complex neurological condition that...
Police departments face LGBT discrimination lawsuits nationwide
More police departments than ever -- including those in California -- are facing a reckoning with their past when it comes to discrimination against their lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) brothers and sisters in blue. In the past, many gay officers were...
Handling a wrongful demotion at work
For many people, a demotion at work is worse than being fired -- especially if you know it's unfair -- or outright illegal. The frustration of knowing that you're being treated unjustly can combine with the embarrassment of having to go back into work every day with...
California senate pays $350,000 discrimination claim
A former employee of the California Senate won a discrimination suit against her former employer for failing to accommodate her needs and retaliating against her for requesting accommodations. The Senate was ordered to pay the former employee $350,000 -- a figure...
Were you fired or wrongfully terminated? What’s the difference?
Absent a clear violation of your contract, what's the difference between being unfairly fired and a wrongful termination? Neither are pleasant experiences, to be certain. Being unfairly let go from your position can happen for a number of reasons -- whether the boss...
The corporate culture is shifting against sexual harassers
There's been a remarkable change in the way that America is approaching the idea of gender equality and rights -- especially where sexual harassment is concerned. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) reports that it has filed 50 percent more lawsuits...
Pregnancy discrimination at work: Your rights
Sexual harassment and gender-based discrimination in the workplace has dominated national conversations as of late -- but there's another form of discrimination that also affects the ability of women to get ahead: pregnancy discrimination. Biases against pregnancy...
Being fired unfairly? Handle yourself like a professional
Nobody enjoys being fired, but the whole experience is somehow vastly worse when you know you don't deserve it and believe it's nothing more than retaliation for exercising your rights as an employee. The important thing to do in this situation is to focus on your...
Don’t let the backlash against ‘MeToo’ intimidate you
America has been suffering from a lot of divisive beliefs lately -- including those surrounding the #MeToo movement. Many people believe the movement helped open the door to conversation about sexual harassment and sexual assault -- as well as reduce the stigma that...