The Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), at Government Code section 12940, is California's main law protecting workers from sexual harassment. FEHA covers most California workers and applies whether the harassment comes from your boss or a coworker. Federal law and several other California statutes add to that protection. Together, the state and federal laws give you stronger rights than federal law alone would.
FEHA treats sexual harassment as a form of sex discrimination and bans it in workplaces across California.
FEHA reaches two kinds of sexual harassment, quid pro quo and a hostile work environment. Quid pro quo harassment happens when a manager ties a job benefit to sexual conduct, for example when a raise depends on going on a date. A hostile work environment builds when unwelcome sexual conduct becomes severe or frequent enough to change the conditions you work under, and repeated comments or unwanted touching can create one over time. You do not have to lose your job or a promotion to have a case, because the law looks at the conduct itself.
FEHA covers a wide range of workers:
FEHA's broader anti-discrimination rules apply to employers with five or more employees, while its harassment protections apply to every California employer, down to a business with a single worker. A worker at a small shop or a brand-new startup has the same protection as someone at a large corporation. We handle sexual harassment cases for workers across California, and the size of your employer does not change your right to a workplace free of harassment.
An employer has to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment, and ignoring a complaint can be a violation in itself. Responsibility for harassment that does happen depends on who is doing it:
California also requires employers with five or more workers to provide harassment-prevention training under Government Code § 12950.1, and a failure to provide it can support a worker's case.
California is not your only source of protection, since Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is the federal law against workplace sexual harassment, and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) enforces it. Title VII applies only to employers with 15 or more employees, so FEHA reaches plenty of smaller California businesses that federal law leaves out. If you work for a larger company, you may be protected under both, and an employment lawyer can tell you which one gives you the stronger position.
A few newer laws protect something different: your ability to take a harassment case forward and to speak about what happened to you. For years, employers used arbitration clauses to force harassment cases into private arbitration, but a 2022 federal law, the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act, now lets you keep a sexual harassment case out of forced arbitration, even if you signed an arbitration agreement when you were hired.
California limits the silence too: the STAND Act (SB 820) and the Silenced No More Act (SB 331) restrict the confidentiality and non-disparagement terms an employer can put in a harassment settlement, so a settlement cannot stop you from talking about what you went through.
SB 1300 amended FEHA in 2018, effective January 1, 2019, and made it easier to prove a harassment case, so even a single serious act of harassment can be enough, and a worker no longer has to show repeated abuse over time to be taken seriously.
California Civil Code section 51.9 reaches beyond the workplace and covers sexual harassment in certain professional relationships outside the usual employer-and-employee setup, like harassment by a landlord or a doctor. When the harasser holds power over you outside of work, section 51.9 may still protect you.
California gives you layered protection against sexual harassment. FEHA is the main law, and federal and other state laws add to it. Which one fits your situation depends on details like the size of your employer and who harassed you, and a deadline applies to every case, which the statute-of-limitations page covers in full. At The Law Offices of Jeremy Pasternak, our sexual harassment lawyers can explain which protections apply to you and what your options are. To talk through what happened in a free, confidential consultation, contact our team at (415) 693-0300 to set up an appointment.
For sexual harassment, yes. FEHA's harassment protections cover every California employer, even one with a single worker, and the five-employee cutoff used for other kinds of discrimination does not apply to harassment.
Yes, it can be. After SB 1300, a single serious act of sexual harassment can support a case, and you do not have to wait for the behavior to repeat before you act.
Yes. FEHA protects people who provide services under a contract, and Civil Code section 51.9 adds protection in certain professional relationships, so an independent contractor harassed on the job still has options under the law.
Yes. FEHA protects you from sexual harassment whatever the sex of the person harassing you, so harassment by someone of your own sex counts the same as any other case.
Yes. FEHA treats harassment because of sexual orientation or gender identity as unlawful, so harassment aimed at you for being gay or transgender is covered the same as any other case.
No. Unwanted touching is one form, but spoken remarks or explicit images can amount to sexual harassment with no physical contact at all.
FEHA, Government Code 12940 (harassment prohibition, contractor coverage, duty to prevent at (k), coworker and nonemployee liability, harasser's personal liability): FindLaw, https://codes.findlaw.com/ca/government-code/gov-sect-12940/
All-sizes harassment coverage at 12940(j)(4)(A), with the five-employee threshold for other provisions at 12926(d): Government Code 12940 and 12926, FindLaw, https://codes.findlaw.com/ca/government-code/gov-sect-12926/
Harassment-prevention training, Government Code 12950.1 (SB 1343): California Legislature, leginfo, https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201720180SB1343
Single-act standard, Government Code 12923 (SB 1300): FindLaw, https://codes.findlaw.com/ca/government-code/gov-sect-12923/ ; SB 1300, leginfo, https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201720180SB1300
Title VII and the 15-employee threshold, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e(b), enforced by the EEOC: https://www.eeoc.gov/sexual-harassment
Forced arbitration, EFAA, Public Law 117-90 (9 U.S.C. 401-402), only if the right-to-pursue section stays: Congress.gov, H.R.4445, https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/4445
Settlement confidentiality, Code of Civil Procedure 1001 (SB 820; SB 331), only if the right-to-pursue section stays: FindLaw, https://codes.findlaw.com/ca/code-of-civil-procedure/ccp-sect-1001/ ; SB 820, leginfo, https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201720180SB820 ; SB 331, leginfo, https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202120220SB331
Civil Code 51.9, harassment in professional relationships: FindLaw, https://codes.findlaw.com/ca/civil-code/civ-sect-51-9/
Disclaimer: The information provided on this website is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Viewing this content does not create an attorney-client relationship with The Law Offices of Jeremy Pasternak. Employment law varies by state and situation, and legal outcomes depend on specific facts and applicable laws. While we make every effort to ensure accuracy, laws change, and unintended errors or omissions may occur. For advice on your particular circumstances, consult an attorney.
