California is an at-will employment state. A company can terminate its employee for any reason. Nevertheless, employers should not dismiss an employee in breach of any law or an employment contract that controls the employee-employer relationship. Suppose you believe your employer violated the law when firing you. In that case, you can file a wrongful termination lawsuit and recover damages, including job reinstatement, back pay for lost wages, attorney fees, and front pay for future lost wages. The laws on wrongful termination are complicated and could affect your ability to seek and acquire compensation, making it crucial to seek legal assistance. The skilled and knowledgeable legal team at Stop Unpaid Wages can collect the relevant information and evidence to win your claim, prevent your employer from using tactics and strategies unfavorable to your case, interview witnesses, and represent you before the jury.

Defining Wrongful Discrimination

Wrongful termination due to discrimination occurs when your employer unlawfully fires you in violation of anti-discrimination laws.

If your employer has wrongfully fired you, you can take legal action against them in court. You can do it at the state level per the Labor Code or at the federal level under Title VII, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), or the Americans with Disability Act (ADA).

If a company terminates any employee in backlash after bringing an unpaid wages claim, the dismissal is a basis for a labor suit. It happens independently in an unpaid wages claim. Even when the court dismisses your unpaid wages claims, the fact that your employer illegally terminated you is grounds for an actionable crime and could lead to financial compensation from your employer.

Defining an Employee

Only employees can bring a wrongful termination claim since wrongful termination violates an employment contract.

An employee means a worker who operates under a supervisor's or employer's supervision, control, or direction.

An employee differs from an independent contractor in terms of legal rights and employer control. Independent contractors offer an employer or company a service or product but do so with significant freedom regarding their operations. In layman’s language, independent contractors work with a firm but determine how they deliver the services or goods and are not under the firm’s direct supervision.

While independent contractors can file a lawsuit against a firm if it violates the terms of the employment agreement, the violation is not a wrongful termination. Wrongful termination happens when the alleged victim is a lawfully accredited company employee.

Instances When It Is Illegal to Dismiss a Worker in California

The situations that make a firing a wrongful termination case are narrower than employees expect. However, they still occur. Here are the grounds for wrongful termination:

Wrongful Termination in Line with Violation of the Family and Medical Leave Act

The Family and Medical Leave Act offers protected leave from work when any of the following apply:

  • You are suffering from a disease that hinders you from performing your job

  • You have delivered and are taking care of a newborn baby

  • You are taking care of your foster or adopted baby

  • You are taking care of a sick loved one

  • You are caring for a member of the armed forces who is under medical attention for a severe illness or injury.

You are entitled to return to your work and be free from retaliation for taking the leave, provided you have worked for the company for a year and more than 1,250 hours. You can take up to twelve weeks of unpaid leave.

If the company dismissed you for taking the family or medical leave to which you are legally entitled, you can file a wrongful termination claim.

Pregnancy Discrimination

Pregnancy discrimination happens when a company terminates an employee because she is expectant, has delivered, or suffers a health condition associated with childbirth or pregnancy, which the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, among other state and federal laws, bans.

Typically, this discrimination manifests when companies assume an expectant worker’s abilities, dedication to work, and availability, resulting in adverse employment action despite satisfactory work performance.

Discrimination against a Protected Class

It happens when a company terminates a worker because they belong to any of the following legally protected categories:

  • Race

  • Color

  • Religion

  • Sex, including gender identity, sexual orientation, and pregnancy

  • Age

  • National (accent, ethnicity, or country of birth)

  • Criminal history (In jurisdictions with ban-the-box laws)

  • Domestic violence victim status

  • Military status

  • HIV/AIDS status

  • Political affiliation

  • Medical condition

  • Union activities or membership

  • Marital status

  • Familial responsibilities or family status

  • Veteran status

  • Ancestry

Breach of Contract

It happens when a company dismisses a worker in breach of the terms highlighted in an employment contract, whether implied, oral, or written. The contract has specific provisions about the duration of employment, the terms under which termination is allowed, and required dismissal procedures, like severance arrangements or progressive discipline. When your employer fails to meet these contractual obligations, you can pursue legal action against your employer.

The court will review the contract language, whether your employer acted in good faith, and the circumstances surrounding your termination when determining whether the breach of contract happened.

Retaliation After Making a Worker’s Compensation Claim

You might have a wrongful termination lawsuit against your employer if you have sustained a workplace-related injury and your company fired you after you filed a workers’ compensation lawsuit. The law also bans companies from threatening to dismiss or dismissing a worker for testifying on behalf of a colleague in a workers' compensation case. Your employer should also not retaliate against you for missing work because of a work-related injury.

Wrongful Termination Due to Wage and Hour Dispute

It happens when a company fires an individual for raising compensation issues that break labor laws, like overtime violations and unpaid wages. When filing your wrongful termination lawsuit, organize documentation like employment contracts, schedules, company policies, and pay stubs as evidence.

Wrongful Termination After Whistleblowing

Whistleblowing retaliation happens when a company terminates a person for reporting breaches of regulations, unlawful activities, and misconduct to the relevant authorities. These cases are complex and require skilled legal assistance.

A perfect example is when your employer fires you for reporting a workplace safety violation, like hazardous working conditions or equipment malfunction. According to the law, employers should address safety issues and must not punish any employee for reporting a breach.

California is an “At-Will” Employment State

Beyond the above-discussed discriminatory reasons, a California company has the right to dismiss its professional relationship with any employee for any reason and whenever without giving a reason or justifying the conduct, provided they do not dismiss the employee for an unlawful reason. This is known as the ‘at-will employment’ doctrine, codified in California Labor Code 2922

Moreover, the doctrine means the employee can terminate the professional relationship with the company when they wish. No party is lawfully required to prolong the relationship provided they are no longer interested. Either party can terminate the professional relationship for any reason and whenever, provided their reasons are lawful.

Despite Golden State being an “at-will" state, the hour and wage laws protect against retaliation. It is an unlawful rationale for termination, and if a company acted in retaliation, you might have a wrongful termination claim. If an employment contract exists, it restricts the company’s ability to dismiss the employee.

Suppose a company hires someone for some duration but fails to delineate termination conditions explicitly. In that case, there are three legal reasons that the company can fire the employee, including the following:

  • The employee willfully refused to fulfill their employment obligation(s)

  • The employee neglected their employment responsibilities

  • The employee cannot perform their employment responsibilities

Please note that a company can dismiss its employees for both unlawful and lawful reasons. It is called a mixed-motive case. Your experienced employment lawyer can differentiate between these motives and efficiently build a wrongful termination case based on the illegal reason.

Other Signs of Wrongful Termination

Wrongful termination can occur if an employee gets dismissed unlawfully, often because of retaliation, discrimination, or a breach of their employment contract. While each situation is unique, there are certain warning indicators that you are a victim of wrongful termination.

Unfair Treatment

A common sign that you may be experiencing wrongful termination is unjust treatment. It is a red flag if you realize your employer has mistreated you compared to your colleagues without a reasonable explanation before terminating you. Unjust treatment may manifest in different forms, like being allocated less desirable tasks, receiving unfair criticism, or being denied professional growth opportunities.

Failure to Follow Due Process

Termination without adhering to the company’s established guidelines may indicate wrongful termination.

Most companies have specific processes detailed in their employee policies or handbooks that employers should follow before terminating an employee. For instance, if your employer should perform several performance reviews or issue warnings before termination, failing to do so violates your legal rights.

Insufficient Performance Reviews

Unexpected firing without adequate performance warnings or reviews could indicate a wrongful termination. Most employers have performance review procedures to offer employees feedback and improvement opportunities. That means you can have a valid wrongful termination claim if your company dismissed you without prior sufficient and fair job performance reviews.

Selective Application of the Company’s Policies

You could be a victim of wrongful termination if your termination were due to your employer's policies' incomparable or selective application. A perfect example is when your employer fails to terminate a colleague with similar infractions as yours but dismisses you. Employers should apply policies fairly and consistently.

Public Policy Exception

The public policy exception permits you to sue your employer if your employer terminated you in breach of a crucial public policy.

You have the legal right to file a wrongful termination suit if your dismissal was due to the following:

  • Refusal to engage in conduct that violates a law or regulation

  • Performed a legal duty

  • Exercised a legal entitlement or privilege

  • Reported an alleged breach of law to law enforcement, a government agency or a supervisor.

A paramount fact that an employee in a wrongful termination suit should prove is the nexus or connection between the following:

  • The employer’s public policy breach

  • The employee’s termination

How the Public Policy Exception Works

The public policy exception intervenes if a company dismisses you for actions that reinforce ethical and legal guidelines. It also safeguards you if the company terminates you for permitted action supporting civic guidelines.

The policy exception provides protections that include the following:

  • Legal rights protection — A company cannot terminate any employee for exercising their constitutional entitlement, including filing a wage or hour complaint.

  • Reporting unlawful actions — The law protects an employee who reports an employer’s legal breaches from being dismissed.

  • Refusing illegal requests from your employer

  • Conducting civic responsibilities — If your employer fires you for participating in judicial proceedings, the public policy exception enables you to contest your termination.

Implied Contract Exception

A primary challenge when filing a wrongful termination claim is defining the precise terms of your employment contract. A violation of your employment contract must have occurred for wrongful termination to have legally happened.

Proving this can be difficult because California acknowledges written and verbal employment contracts. Based on both employment agreements, a company cannot terminate an employee without justifiable cause.

Covenant of Good Faith Exception

Other grounds for filing your wrongful termination claim can be if your job termination happens even if there is an agreement of good faith. While the covenant of good faith is identical to the implied contract exception, it extends further.

A covenant exists between an employer and their employee if they appropriately fulfil their responsibilities. If an employer terminates your employment, the covenant of good faith exception is violated.

Constructive Discharge

Constructive discharge or constructive dismissal is when an employer establishes a toxic, unbearable, or inappropriate working environment that forces an employee to resign. California regards constructive discharge as wrongful termination instead of resignation. Even though the employee decides to quit, the employer’s actions discontinue the professional relationship.

Examples of constructive dismissal include the following:

  • Repeated yelling from your employer

  • An employer making disparaging comments

  • Verbal harassment by the employer

  • An unjustifiable demotion by the employer

  • Unreasonable performance reviews by your employer

  • A reduction of your role, working hours and shifts by your employer

A constructive dismissal claim can also occur if an employer places their employee at potential risk of workplace injury.

To recover damages based on constructive discharge, you must prove that the employer deliberately established an intolerable working environment.

Recovering Lost Income and Benefits in Your Wrongful Termination Claim

In a successful wrongful termination claim, you can be eligible to receive compensatory damages for lost income and other benefits.

In many cases where a worker cannot persuade a jury of their wrongful termination, they can recover a certain amount of lost wages.

Calculating Your Damages

What victims, juries, and wrongful termination lawyers calculate includes the following:

  • The value of salary or wages and the worth of other benefits, including health insurance coverage, that you could have earned from your employer, beginning from the time of the wrongful termination to the time the court ruled in your favor

  • The value of your wages and other employment benefits you may have received from your employer, beginning when the court makes the order and extending to the entire period you would have expected the job to continue.

  • The worth of contractual damages due to your employer’s conduct

Future lost salary or wages could be challenging to calculate since it is difficult to ascertain how long you would have continued working for your employer if there had been no wrongful termination. However, you and your lawyer can use the following factors to make a guess:

  • Your work performance, age, and intent concerning your work with the employer.

  • The probability that the company will maintain the operations related to your job.

Mitigation of Damages

Regarding employment cases, mitigating damages means searching for and agreeing to alternative employment to compensate for some of your financial loss due to wrongful termination.

In a wrongful termination lawsuit where a company awards an employee lost wages and employment benefits, the judge considers the degree to which the company did or could mitigate damages. Therefore, the amount you earned or may have earned while on work that was significantly identical to the one you lost reduces the compensation awarded in your wrongful termination case

Mitigation Test

The compensation amount you can qualify to be awarded in your wrongful termination case can be reduced if your employer proves the following:

  • Employment that was remarkably identical to your previous job was available to you

  • You did not make a reasonable effort to pursue and retain that employment

  • The wages or salary you may have earned from that employment

Furthermore, the employer bears the burden of arguing their case for damage mitigation.

Important considerations when determining if a particular job is considerably identical to your previous one include the following:

  • The job’s nature

  • Whether your new job is significantly inferior to your former one

  • The wages, benefits, and working hours of your new job

  • The background, skills, and experience necessary for the new position

  • The new and old positions’ responsibilities

  • Whether your new position is within the same locality

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages compensate for losses without direct financial documentation. They address emotional distress, disruption of everyday life, and physical pain. Juries determine the value by assessing how the wrongful termination impacted your activities, emotional wellness, and relationships. The goal is recognizing the full extent of suffering that cannot be quantified with pay stubs.

These non-economic damages include the following:

Emotional Distress

In a wrongful termination case, you can request the jury to award pain and suffering or emotional distress damages. However, juries award these damages only when a company has acted badly and the worker suffered in a manner verifiable by a mental health professional.

Typically, the amount of damage awarded for pain and suffering depends on the jury, making it challenging for an attorney to assess the amount you could receive.

Damage to Reputation

Employees can receive these damages if they experienced adverse effects on their professional reputation, if their wrongful termination is publicized or based on false accusations, making it challenging to secure employment in the future.

Loss of Enjoyment

If wrongful termination disrupts your life and affects your general well-being, you can claim damages for the reduced quality of life.

Punitive Damages

Punitive damages refer to the amount the court orders your employer to pay for egregious conduct. Unlike other damages designed to reimburse an employee for losses, punitive damages are meant to punish the company and deter future similar actions.

Punitive damages do not apply in every wrongful termination claim. Generally, punitive damages can be challenging to recover, even when available, and they can be impossible to quantify in advance. Note that an employee has to meet a higher burden of proof at trial to stand a chance of receiving punitive damages.

Even if you are eligible for these damages and have satisfied the burden of proof, the value of compensation you receive depends on the jury’s decision.

Statute of Limitations

The statute of limitations is the timeframe during which you should file your wrongful termination lawsuit. Generally, it starts running when you have been hurt in some manner or learned that you have been hurt.

When the SOL has elapsed, you can not file your claim. If you try taking legal action, the court will dismiss your case. SOLs are designed to ensure the memories and proof for the case incident are fresh and push you to plead your rights promptly.

Depending on your case circumstances, the SOL can range from two to four years. Your employment attorney can assist you in knowing the amount of time you have to bring your wrongful termination case. Here are different SOLs:

  • Violation of implied contract — Two years

  • Fair Employment Housing Act retaliation — Three years

  • Violating the Worker Adjustment Retraining Notification Act — Three years

  • Whistleblower retaliation and Sarbanes-Oxley Act — Three years

Find an Experienced Wrongful Termination Attorney Near Me

While California is an “at-will” employment state and your employer can fire you for no reason whenever, the law bans them from dismissing you for illegitimate reasons like retaliation or discrimination. Wrongful termination happens when a company fires an employee in breach of the employee’s rights.

When you consult Stop Unpaid Wages at 424-781-8411, we can review your case facts to determine whether you have a valid claim and explore the available legal options. We can work aggressively to protect your rights.

Although most wrongful termination cases can be resolved via settlement negotiations, we can prepare your case for trial, maximizing our leverage at the bargaining table and helping you receive a satisfactory jury award.