Wrongful Termination in Santa Cruz, California
What constitutes wrongful termination?
State and federal employment laws protect employees from being illegally dismissed from their positions. In California, when a person is terminated from a job due to his or her race, national origin, religion, sex or sexual orientation, gender, physical or mental disability status, pregnancy, or whistle-blowing, clear grounds exist for a discrimination claim. Additionally, California courts consider the following reasons for firing to be wrongful termination:
- Refusal to do something illegal
- Doing something allowed under California state or federal law
- Complaining about work-related matters
- Complaining about an employer to a third party
- Unspecified reasons that simply do not feel legitimate
- Unspecified reasons used to cover up another reason
Although a wrongful dismissal claim can be difficult to prove, the attorneys at the Santa Cruz wrongful termination law firm of Grunsky, Ebey, Farrar & Howell (the Grunsky Law Firm) advocate for the rights of clients who have been wrongfully terminated, and the help them seek suitable amends when appropriate.
Two types of wrongful termination
When a terminated employee and his or her Santa Cruz wrongful termination lawyer decide to pursue a claim, they may cite unlawful dismissal in one of the following two ways:
- In violation of public policy. If firing the employee breached certain discrimination laws such as the following:
- Anti-discrimination laws
- Whistle-blower protection laws
- Other miscellaneous laws, including the California Family Rights Act (which provides extended time off for serious health conditions), the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (which mandates that employees be granted sufficient time off for childbirth), and additional aspects of the Labor Code that ensure penalty-free time off for jury duty, school visits (for employees with children), or breastfeeding infants
- For breach of an implied contract. If an employee believes he or she was fired without just cause, this may be a case of breach of contract. This can be difficult to prove if no physical contract exists, but our Santa Cruz wrongful termination attorneys are often successful when they demonstrate that the terms of firing were abnormal in comparison with standard company practices or that the circumstances of the termination violated internal rules and procedures of the company.
