Sacramento Employment Law Attorney Elisa W. Ungerman

Problem Solving with Your Goals in Mind

The Ungerman Law Offices represents victims of illegal workplace discrimination, harassment, or retaliation due to an employee's legally protected status or legally protected conduct. For example:

ILLEGAL DISCRIMINATION

Generally, a California employer may not adversely act against an employee or an applicant for employment because of that employee or applicant's age (if 40 or over), sex, gender, race, national origin/ancestry, religion, pregnancy, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, medical condition or genetic characteristics. Each of these categories is a legally protected classification. Moreover, a California employer may not adversely act against an employee because they associate with someone whose status is protected. Go to Ungermanlaw.com for FAQs on this topic. The Ungerman Law office represents those workers whose status is protected or they have associated with those whose status is protected and who have some evidence that the adverse actions of the Employer occurred because of that protected status.

ILLEGAL RETALIATION

Generally, a California employer may not punish an employee that has engaged in legally protected conduct. Legally protected conduct includes refusing to participate in illegal activities, such as refusing to violate health and safety laws, or making complaints about actions that are illegal under federal or state law or regulations to governmental agencies or to the employer itself even if it is not a governmental agency. Legally protected conduct also includes opposing illegal conduct such as complaining about illegal discrimination or harassment, or simply participating in that opposition, such as aiding a co-worker with her sexual harassment complaint, or participating in an investigation about a discrimination complaint. Go to UNGERMANLAW.COM for FAQs on this subject. The Ungerman Law Offices represent those workers who engaged in legally protected conduct and have some evidence that their actions caused an employer's unfavorable actions against them.

SEXUAL HARASSMENT

No employer in California may allow sexual harassment to occur in the workplace. Sexual harassment is offensive, unwanted conduct based on a person's sex, such as unwelcome sexual advances, or visual, verbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature. It can take many forms, from supervisors asking for a sexual-related conduct in exchange for job favors, to co-worker's fostering of a sexually-based atmosphere in the workplace with photos and comments displayed in his cubicle. If a supervisor is sexually harassing the employee, the employer is strictly liable for the conduct. If a co-worker is sexually harassing the employee, the employee's work environment must be sufficiently "hostile" for the harassment to be actionable. Both males and females can be the victims of sexual harassment. Go to Ungermanlaw.com for FAQs on this subject. The Ungerman Law Offices represents those workers subjected to legally actionable sexual harassment.

PROTECTED LEAVES

Both State and Federal Statutes grant certain workers job protection when they take extended leaves of absences. Generally, employees who work for employers with over 50 employees and have worked at their jobs for over 12 months and otherwise meet the hours worked and are entitled up to three months of job-protected leave for specific qualifying conditions such as a serious health condition, or the serious health condition of a spouse or child. In California, pregnant employees who work for employers with only 15 employees are entitled to protected leave of up to 4 months for the time they are actually disabled by their pregnancy, while pregnant employees employed by employers with 50 or more employees are entitled to an additional three months of protected "baby bonding" leave after the disability leave ends. For employees with a disability, a reasonably finite leave of absence can be an accommodation that they may be entitled to, and if so, such leave would also be job-protected leave. Employers must provide these leaves to qualifying employees and may not interfere with the taking of these leaves. The Ungerman Law Offices represent workers who qualify for these leaves and whose leave was otherwise denied or interfered with by their employer.

WAGE AND HOUR VIOLATIONS

Private employers in California are required to comply with the statutes, regulations, and wage orders within the California Labor Code regarding payment of wages including minimum wage, vested vacation pay at the full payment rate and overtime; mandatory rest periods, ,meal breaks, etc. When they do not, they are in violation of the law, subject to penalties and interest. See Ungermanlaw.com for a listing of the common violations. The Ungerman law Offices represents employees whose employer has violated the various wage and hour laws in California.

WRONGFUL TERMINATION

Not all terminations are illegal or "wrongful". But when terminations occur based on discrimination because of a persons protected status or based on retaliation because of a person's protected conduct, they become "wrongful" and illegal. Terminations can be "actual" (the employer terminates you) or "constructive" (you quit because the illegal conduct was so bad and your employer, despite having been told about the conduct, failed to correct it). It is highly advised that you consult with a qualified employment law attorney if you think you need to quit your job because of the employer's actions. The Ungerman Law Offices represent workers who have been wrongfully terminated due to discrimination or retaliation as described above.

One-on-One Legal Representation
Evening and Weekend Appointments Available

Ungerman Law Offices

331 J Street Ste 200
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 447-2484 • Fax: (916) 334-2924
E-mail • Map and Directions
http://www.ungermanlaw.com/

California employment law, wrongful termination, retaliation, whistleblowing, disability and pregnancy discrimination, sexual harassment, employment contracts & severance agreements, and failure to accommodate lawyer Elisa W. Ungerman represents clients in Sacramento, California metro area communities such as Sacramento and West Sacramento, Antelope, Rockland, Woodland, Citrus Heights, Folsom, Roseville, Davis, and Elk Grove.

Sacramento County •  Placer County • Yolo County • El Dorado County •  Sutter County •  Yuba County