Los Angeles Retaliation Lawyer

Los Angeles Workplace Retaliation Attorney

Helping Workers Fight Retaliation in the Workplace

When an employer penalizes an employee for engaging in a legally protected activity, the employer can be held liable for retaliation. It can be obvious when an employer is retaliating against employees, such as with a negative performance review shortly after filing a harassment complaint. However, most of the time, a case of retaliation is not as clear.

If you suspect your employer is retaliating against you, call our employer retaliation attorneys in Los Angeles. Hennig Kramer Ruiz & Singh offers free case evaluations to every new client. We will review your situation with you and help you determine if you have a case against your employer.

Local Southern California Employment Law Firm

Hennig Kramer Ruiz & Singh, LLP is committed to the Los Angeles community.

Our founder, Attorney Rob Hennig, is a board member for the Southern California chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). Mr. Hennig is also a past member of the board of directors and past president of the LGBT chapter of the ACLU of Southern California.

In addition, all of our associates have worked extensively in both a nonprofit and professional setting.

Dealing with Retaliation at Work

We firmly believe that employees should not have to choose between obeying the law and keeping their jobs. We also believe that everyone deserves a safe work environment free from harassment and disability discrimination.

Here’s what to do if you think you have been a victim of workplace retaliation: 

• Document as much as you can
• Follow your employer’s internal policies or procedures for making a complaint
• Speak with an experienced retaliation lawyer, like ours, in Los Angeles

This record of your treatment will be crucial evidence in your claim for retaliation.

How to Document Retaliation at Work

California law prohibits you from recording anyone without their consent, so recording can be difficult when it comes to documenting retaliation. That’s why it is important for you to preserve evidence using email and jotting down each occurrence on your notes.

You need to save it in a file that does not belong to your company’s server, your work e-mail account, or other company records. Any communication or email that is punishing or negative should be sent to your personal email and printed.

Activities Protected From Retaliation

Under state and federal law, it is illegal for an employer to take any adverse employment action against an employee for making a good faith report of unlawful activity. It is also illegal for an employer to take an adverse action against an employee for refusing to engage in illegal conduct. California’s employment laws generally provide more expansive protections from discrimination than federal law.

Retaliation is unlawful if it based on a variety of protected activities, including:

• Reporting or refusing to engage in illegal conduct
• Reporting fraud on a government contract
• Complaining of workplace harassment or discrimination
• Filing a wage claim with the California Labor Commissioner
• Filing a lawsuit for a violation of your civil rights or assisting another employee in the filing of a lawsuit
• Filing a complaint with the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH)
• Filing a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

What Does Retaliation Look Like?

If you feel that you are being retaliated against by your employer, you most likely are. While some forms of retaliation are dramatic and obvious, such as wrongful termination, other types of workplace revenge are more subtle. Even though they are less obvious, retaliation of any form is damaging to the victim and creates a hostile working environment.

Typical forms of retaliation include:

• Unfair disciplinary action
• Negative performance reviews
• Micromanagement shortly after filling a complaint
• Exclusion from meetings, projects, and other workplace functions you ordinarily would have been included on
• Denial of necessary or ongoing training
• Denial or promotions, raises, or other compensation and benefits
• Reduction in pay or denial of bonuses and overtime
• Unfairly increased workload or unequal expectations for you compared with your peers
• Wrongful termination