You Should Not Have to Put Up With Harassment to Keep Your Job
Sexual harassment can make it hard to go to work, concentrate, or even sleep. Many people stay quiet because they worry about being labeled a troublemaker, losing shifts, or not being believed. California law takes a different view: employees have a right to a workplace free of harassment, and employers have a duty to stop it.
Rastegar Law Group has represented California employees since 1991. Our Torrance office helps South Bay workers in offices, hospitals, restaurants, hotels, warehouses, and industrial workplaces understand their rights and decide what to do next, confidentially and at their own pace.
What Counts as Sexual Harassment Under California Law
The Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), Government Code section 12940, subdivision (j), prohibits harassment because of sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation. Harassment generally falls into two categories:
- Quid pro quo harassment: a supervisor or someone with authority conditions a job benefit, such as a hire, promotion, raise, schedule, or continued employment, on sexual favors, or punishes someone for refusing.
- Hostile work environment: unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature, or conduct directed at someone because of their sex, that is severe or pervasive enough to alter the conditions of employment.
Examples include unwanted touching, sexual comments or jokes, repeated requests for dates, sexually explicit messages or images, comments about someone’s body, and hostility toward someone because of their gender. Under FEHA, harassment does not have to be motivated by sexual desire to be unlawful.
In Government Code section 12923, the Legislature clarified that a single incident of harassing conduct can be enough to create a hostile work environment if it unreasonably interferes with a person’s work, and that the “stray remarks” doctrine should not be used to dismiss harassment claims.
Who Is Protected and Who Can Be Responsible
FEHA’s harassment protections apply to employers of any size, and they cover employees, applicants, unpaid interns, volunteers, and people providing services under a contract. Responsibility depends on who did the harassing:
- Supervisors: an employer is generally strictly liable for harassment by a supervisor.
- Coworkers: an employer is liable if it knew or should have known about the harassment and failed to take immediate and appropriate corrective action.
- Customers, clients, and vendors: an employer may also be responsible for harassment by non-employees under the same knew-or-should-have-known standard.
- Individual harassers: under FEHA, the person who harasses can be held personally liable.
Employers with five or more employees must also provide sexual harassment prevention training to supervisors and non-supervisory employees (Government Code section 12950.1).
Retaliation for Reporting Is Also Illegal
It is unlawful to retaliate against anyone who reports harassment, supports a coworker’s complaint, or takes part in an investigation (Government Code section 12940, subdivision (h)). Retaliation can look like a demotion, reduced hours, worse assignments, sudden write-ups, or termination. In many cases the retaliation claim ends up as important as the harassment claim itself. See our retaliation page.
Steps You Can Take
- Write down each incident: date, time, place, what was said or done, and who saw it.
- Save texts, emails, social media messages, and images you received. Do not delete them, even if they are upsetting.
- Review your employer’s harassment policy and reporting process. Reporting internally, preferably in writing, puts the employer on notice, though it is not always required before you speak with a lawyer.
- Talk to a doctor or therapist if the harassment is affecting your health. Those records can matter later.
- Speak with an attorney before signing any agreement that includes confidentiality terms or a release of claims.
Confidential Help From Our Torrance Office
We understand how difficult these conversations can be. Consultations are free and confidential, available in person at 22760 Hawthorne Boulevard, Suite 200, Torrance, CA 90505, or by video, in English, Spanish, or Farsi. Office hours are Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. We handle cases on a contingency fee basis, so there is no attorney’s fee unless there is a recovery. Call (310) 961-9600 or reach out online.
Sexual Harassment FAQs
Do I have to report the harassment to HR before I talk to a lawyer?
No. You can speak with an attorney at any time. Whether and how to report internally depends on your situation, and an attorney can help you decide. Reporting can strengthen a claim, especially when the harasser is a coworker or customer.
How long do I have to take action?
Under FEHA, you generally have three years from the last act of harassment to file a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department, and one year after a right-to-sue notice is issued to file a lawsuit. Acting sooner helps preserve evidence and witnesses’ memories.
I signed an arbitration agreement when I was hired. Can I still go to court?
Possibly. Under the federal Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act, an employee may generally choose not to be bound by a pre-dispute arbitration agreement for sexual harassment claims. How it applies depends on the claims and the agreement, so have an attorney review it.
Can my employer make me keep the harassment secret in a settlement?
California law limits that. Settlement agreements generally cannot prevent disclosure of factual information about sexual harassment claims that were filed in court or with an agency, although a claimant can request that their own identity be kept private. An attorney can explain how these rules apply to any agreement you are offered.
This content is for informational purposes and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Recent Results
These are selected sexual harassment recoveries. They are not a complete list of the firm’s work. See all selected results on our employment case results page.
- $90,000 — Recovery across two cases for a restaurant worker. (Sexual harassment and wage and hour)
- $80,000 — An office supervisor at a logistics company. (Sexual harassment)
Disclaimer: Past results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome. Every case is different, and results depend on the facts. Amounts shown are gross recoveries before attorney’s fees and costs. Class settlement amounts are totals for the class, not what any one person received.