California hostile work environment lawyersIt isn’t just noise. It can be evidence.
For California workers harassed because of who they are, by a boss, a coworker or even a customer.
Exclusively for workers Free virtual consultations Serving California workers since 2012
On the record
Illustrative examples, not client stories
- Date: Mar 038:52 a.m.What was said: “Smile more, sweetheart.”Heard bytwo coworkers at the front counter
- Date: Mar 059:30 a.m.What was said: [another ‘joke’ about your accent]Heard bythe whole team, on the morning call
- Date: Mar 1112:15 p.m.What was said: “You people are always late.”Heard bytwo coworkers in the break room
- Date: Mar 144:40 p.m.What was said: [a comment about your body]Heard byyour manager; a customer said it
- Date: Mar 1910:05 a.m.What was said: “Isn’t it time you retired?”Heard byeight people at the staff meeting
- Date: Mar 247:58 p.m.What was posted: [a cartoon about your faith]Seen bythe team group chat; screenshot saved
Six illustrative remarks, each with a date and who heard or saw it. These are illustrative examples, not client stories.
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No single moment may feel big enough to report. Together, they can add up to something the law takes seriously.
If it’s happening because of who you are, the law may protect you, whether it comes from a supervisor, a coworker or a customer.
- Comments about your accent, your English or where your family is from
- “Jokes” about your age, or questions about when you’ll finally retire
- Unwanted touching, or someone who stands too close and blocks your way
- A manager who keeps asking you out, or keeps commenting on your body
- Graffiti, cartoons or images left at your station or posted in a group chat
- Being excluded and mocked after you came out
- Teasing about your faith, your religious dress or your prayer breaks
- Coworkers mimicking a disability, or a nickname built on it
Who can create a hostile work environment?
More people than you might think.
Under Gov. Code § 12940(j), harassment because of who you are is unlawful whoever it comes from. What changes is who is responsible.
The faint lines above are pressure reaching one worker from different directions. Choose each person in turn to see what California law says about them, and how the picture ends.
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01 · A supervisor
A supervisor
When a supervisor harasses you because of who you are, California holds the employer responsible. The law’s “knew or should have known” condition applies to harassment by coworkers and outsiders, not supervisors. The supervisor can also be personally liable.
Gov. Code § 12940(j)(1), (j)(3) -
02 · A coworker
A coworker
Harassment by a coworker is unlawful too. The employer is liable if it, or its supervisors, knew or should have known about it and failed to take immediate and appropriate corrective action. The coworker can be personally liable for their own harassment.
Gov. Code § 12940(j)(1), (j)(3) -
03 · A customer, client or vendor
A customer, client or vendor
People who don’t work for your employer count. An employer may be responsible for harassment by nonemployees when it knew or should have known and didn’t take immediate and appropriate corrective action. The law also looks at how much control the employer had over them.
Gov. Code § 12940(j)(1) -
04 · An outside contractor
An outside contractor
A contractor from another company is a nonemployee, under the same rule. Protection runs the other way too: California also protects applicants, unpaid interns, volunteers and people working under contract from being harassed.
Gov. Code § 12940(j)(1) -
05 · Your employer, whatever its size
Your employer, whatever its size
Most of California’s job-discrimination rules apply to employers with five or more employees. The harassment ban applies to employers with even one. Every employer must take all reasonable steps to prevent harassment, and you don’t have to show you lost pay or a promotion to have a claim.
Gov. Code § 12940(j)(1), (j)(4)(A), (k) -
06 · You
And you
You don’t have to stand there alone.
Speaking up is protected: under FEHA, an employer can’t punish you for opposing harassment or filing a complaint. Tell us who is creating the environment, and we’ll tell you what the law can do about it.
Gov. Code § 12940(h)
What “hostile” means in California law
People use the phrase for any miserable job. The law uses it for something narrower, and in some ways stronger, under California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), Gov. Code § 12940(j).
A boss who yells at everyone. A coworker who grates. A place that wears you down.
Conduct based on a protected characteristic that is severe or pervasive enough to alter the conditions of your work, creating an environment that you, and a reasonable person in your position, would find hostile, intimidating, offensive, oppressive or abusive.
Because of
- Race, including hair texture and protective hairstyles such as braids, locs and twists
- Color
- Religion, including religious dress and grooming
- National origin
- Ancestry
- Sex and gender, including pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding
- Gender identity
- Gender expression
- Sexual orientation
- Marital status
- Age (40 and over)
- Physical or mental disability
- Medical condition
- Genetic information
- Reproductive health decisionmaking
- Military or veteran status
It also counts if you’re harassed because you’re perceived to have one of these traits, or because of someone you’re associated with. Sexual harassment doesn’t have to be motivated by sexual desire. Gov. Code §§ 12940(j), 12926
Severe or pervasive
Severe:one serious incident, such as a threat or unwanted touching.
Pervasive:a pattern over time. It’s “or,” not “and.” Courts look at everything: what happened, how often, where, and whether it was threatening or humiliating.
Eight things California law says
Statutes named so you can look them up.
One incident can be enough
If it’s serious enough. A single incident can be enough for a jury to decide the claim if it unreasonably interfered with your work or created an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment.
Gov. Code § 12923(b)No pass for “stray remarks”
A remark doesn’t get a pass because it seemed offhand or came from someone who doesn’t make decisions about your job. And a rough, “that’s how we talk here” workplace doesn’t lower the bar.
Gov. Code § 12923(c), (d)Your work doesn’t have to suffer
You don’t have to prove your productivity dropped, or that you lost a raise, a promotion or your job.
Gov. Code §§ 12923(a), 12940(j)(1)Supervisors, coworkers, even customers
For a supervisor’s harassment, the employer is strictly liable. For a coworker, customer, client or vendor, it’s responsible if it knew or should have known and didn’t take immediate and appropriate corrective action.
Gov. Code § 12940(j)(1)The harasser can be personally liable
The person who harassed you can be held personally responsible for harassment, whether or not your employer knew.
Gov. Code § 12940(j)(3)Employers of any size
The harassment ban covers employers with even one employee, and protects applicants, unpaid interns, volunteers and some independent contractors too.
Gov. Code § 12940(j)(1), (j)(4)(A)Employers must prevent it
Employers must take all reasonable steps to prevent harassment from occurring. Failing to can be its own violation.
Gov. Code § 12940(j)(1), (k)Speaking up is protected
It’s separately illegal to punish you for complaining about harassment or helping with an investigation. About retaliation
Gov. Code § 12940(h)
What if it’s just a terrible boss?
A boss who is rude, unfair or yells at everyone usually isn’t breaking harassment law by itself, because the law asks why it’s happening. That doesn’t mean you’re out of options.
Tell us what’s going on. We’ll tell you honestly whether the law covers it. Often something does:
- If it turns out the treatment is because of who you are, it may be harassment or discrimination after all.
- If it got worse after you complained or reported something, that can be retaliation.
- A hard workplace can hide other violations, such as unpaid overtime or missed breaks. See wage and hour violations.
The deadlines
- 3 yearsgenerally, from the harassment to file a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department (CRD). Gov. Code § 12960(e)(5)
- Right-to-sueThe CRD issues a right-to-sue notice, the step that opens the door to court. How filing works
- 1 yearfrom the date of that notice to file your lawsuit. Gov. Code § 12965(c)(1)
Narrow extensions exist, but don’t count on them. If the harassment is ongoing, talk to a lawyer about how the deadline applies to you.
Federal deadlines are much shorter: generally 300 days for an EEOC charge in California.
What you can recover
Depending on the facts of your case, the law allows several kinds of recovery. We don’t promise numbers. After a free review, we’ll tell you honestly what your case may involve.
- Lost pay and benefitsWages and benefits you lost, including if the harassment cost you your job or drove you out.
- Future lost earningsWhen the harm follows you into the jobs that come after.
- Emotional distressCompensation for the anxiety, lost sleep and humiliation that harassment can cause.
- Punitive damagesWhere allowed: when the employer acted with malice, oppression or fraud, proven by clear and convincing evidence. Civ. Code § 3294
- Attorney’s fees and costsFEHA lets a court award reasonable attorney’s fees and costs. Gov. Code § 12965(c)(6)
What to gather
Start your own record today. You don’t need all of it before you call, but a dated, specific, witnessed account is hard to dismiss as noise.
- Date & timeMar 038:52 a.m.What was said or done“Smile more, sweetheart.” Third time this week.Who saw or heard itTwo coworkers at the front counterProof you haveText to a friend that night; email to HR on Mar 04
- Dates and timesWhen each thing happened. Close is fine if you’re not sure.
- What was said or doneThe exact words, if you can. Write them down the same day.
- Who saw or heard itCoworkers, customers or anyone else who was there.
- Screenshots, texts and imagesMessages, group chats, photos of graffiti or images left for you.
- Complaints to HR, and the repliesEmails, tickets, meeting notes, and anything you were told back.
- Medical or therapy records, if anyIf you’ve seen a doctor or counselor because of what’s happening.
- A running logKeep adding to it, like the one above. Patterns show up over time.
Once we take your case, you can upload these in your client app, right from your phone, and see your case move.
- Keep copies only of things you’re allowed to keep. Don’t forward confidential company files.
- Don’t secretly record conversations. California generally requires the consent of everyone in a confidential conversation. Penal Code § 632
A result on the record
Harassment cases are built the way the record above is: date by date, witness by witness.
SettlementEmployees First Labor Law
$1,750,000Sexual Harassment & Wrongful Termination
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Questions people ask
Straight answers. Your situation turns on its own facts, so a conversation is the most useful next step.
What qualifies as a hostile work environment in California?
Harassment because of a protected characteristic, such as your race, sex or gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability, national origin or age (40 and over), that is severe or pervasive enough to alter the conditions of your work. It can be spoken, physical or visual, and it can come from a supervisor, a coworker or even a customer. Courts look at all the circumstances, including what happened, how often, and whether it was threatening or humiliating.
Can one incident be enough?
It can, if it is serious enough. California law says a single incident of harassing conduct can be enough for a jury to decide a hostile work environment claim if it unreasonably interfered with your work or created an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment (Gov. Code § 12923(b)). Many claims involve a pattern, but the law doesn’t make you wait for one.
Is a bad boss a hostile work environment?
Usually not by itself. A boss who is rude, unfair or yells at everyone generally isn’t breaking harassment law. The law steps in when the mistreatment is because of who you are, or when it’s payback for speaking up, which is retaliation. A hard workplace can also hide other violations, such as unpaid wages or missed breaks. Tell us what’s happening; we’ll tell you honestly whether the law covers it.
Can I sue my coworker personally?
For harassment, yes. Under Gov. Code § 12940(j)(3), an employee who harasses you can be personally liable, whether or not your employer knew. That personal liability applies to harassment, not to discrimination or retaliation. Your employer may be responsible too: it is strictly liable for a supervisor’s harassment, and for a coworker’s or customer’s harassment when it knew or should have known and didn’t take immediate and appropriate corrective action.
Do I have to report it to HR first?
No. You don’t have to report to HR to have a claim, and the harasser can be held personally responsible either way. But reporting usually helps. If a coworker or customer is the harasser, the employer is generally liable only if it knew or should have known and didn’t act. Even with a supervisor, not using a safe, available complaint process can reduce what you recover. If reporting doesn’t feel safe, talk to a lawyer first. Punishing you for reporting is illegal retaliation (Gov. Code § 12940(h)).
How long do I have to file?
In California you generally have three years from the harassment to file a complaint with the Civil Rights Department, and then one year from your right-to-sue notice to file a lawsuit. Narrow extensions exist, but don’t count on them. If the harassment is ongoing, talk to a lawyer about how the deadline applies. Federal deadlines are much shorter (300 days for an EEOC charge in California).
What does it cost to talk to you?
The consultation is free and virtual. No attorney’s fee and no case costs unless we recover money for you. If we do, our fee is a percentage of the recovery, and the case costs we advanced are repaid from your share — all set out in your written fee agreement.
Harassment rarely travels alone
- Sexual HarassmentUnwanted advances, comments or touching, and pressure tied to your job.
- Workplace DiscriminationTreated worse in pay, promotion or firing because of who you are.
- Retaliation ClaimsPunished after you complained, reported or spoke up.
- Constructive DischargeThe harassment made it impossible to stay, and you quit.
On the record
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Combined recoveries in cases handled by our attorneys including employment and injury matters. Every case is different, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
This page is general information, not legal advice. Contacting us does not create an attorney–client relationship.
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