Harassment in the workplace can adversely affect every aspect of a victim’s life. If you believe your employer is engaging in unlawful conduct or allowing a hostile work environment to continue unchecked, we can guide you through the steps you need to take to vindicate your rights.At the Law Offices of Jeremy Pasternak in San Francisco and Los Angeles, we have been standing up for the rights of workers and executives for 20 years. Our attorneys have the knowledge, trial skills and resources to effectively take on companies throughout California that allow their employees to be subjected to a hostile work environment. Nearly everyone has observed some level of hostility or bullying in the workplace.
The Equal Pay Act (EPA) prohibits employers from discriminating against a female employee based on their sex. Additionally, this federal law mandates that employers must pay a man and a woman who are doing the same type of job the same level of pay. The EPA is part of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and is enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
This federal act is not specific to gender; however, it ensures that women have a maximum hour work week, a minimum wage, overtime pay, and also eliminates child labor. The elimination of child labor impacted women in a significant way and provided more opportunities in the workplace. This federal act has been amended more than 20 times in its history, showing that it continues to be an important part of all worker’s rights.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (as well as California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) prohibits discrimination against women in the workplace. It is also important to note that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) regulates discrimination in the workplace as well.
In order to save themselves both healthcare costs and sick leave, many employers fired women once they became pregnant. This federal act requires that employers may never discriminate against a pregnant woman or use her pregnancy (or possibility to become pregnant) as a factor in the hiring or employment processes.
COBRA impacts all employees; however, this federal act is especially important for women as it requires employers to maintain health insurance coverage for a period of time after an employee separates from their job. As a result, a woman who leaves her place of employment for any reason, will still have the ability to have health insurance coverage for her and her family.
The FMLA allows both men and women to take time off of work (unpaid leave) in the event of adoption or birth of a newborn child. Every employee working for a company of over 50 employees has the legal right to take FMLA leave if they have worked there for a specific period of time. This federal law obviously helps women who have just given birth or recently adopted a child.
