Los Angeles Hostile Work Environment Lawyer

Hostile Work Environment Lawyer in Los Angeles, CA

Everyone deserves to have a workplace that is free from hostility and harassment. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. When you need a hostile work environment attorney in Los Angeles, you can count on the team at the Azadian Law Group, PC, and we are ready to help you get through this. Let our knowledgeable and experienced team investigate what happened so we can work to secure the compensation you truly deserve.

What is a hostile work environment? Examples of a hostile work environment can include:

• Use of racist terms or racist remarks.
• Use of negative remarks towards someone’s gender.
• Negative remarks related to an employee’s sexual orientation.
• Making fun of an employee’s medical condition or disability.
• Sexually explicit remarks or jokes.

Examples that generally do not constitute a hostile work environment can include:

• Micromanaging employees.
• Cursing that is unrelated to a protected characteristic (i.e., cursing not related to race, gender, sexual orientation, or disability).
• Favoritism towards employees that is unrelated to a protected characteristic.
• Requiring an employee to work long hours or nitpicking an employee’s performance.

Azadian Law Group has some of the best Los Angeles Hostile Work Environment Attorneys. We offer free consultation to see if what an employee has experienced is an illegal hostile work environment. When an employee is still employed, we also work with the employee to ensure that their concerns are documented appropriately. Los Angeles Hostile Work Environment Attorneys have successfully handled numerous harassment and hostile work environment claims, including claims based on negative treatment due to an employee’s race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or sexual advances in the workplace.

What makes a workplace hostile?

The term hostile work environment can be confusing. We want to make this clear – a hostile work environment can affect a person’s entire life. There are many ways that a workplace can become hostile. Sometimes, it is hostile to a group of people and sometimes just to an individual.

Workers are afforded significant protections under both federal and state law. In many cases, a hostile work environment is created when a person is discriminated against based on their:

• Race and color
• Nationality
• Sexual orientation
• Pregnancy status
• Marital status
• Gender identity
• Disability
• Religion or creed
• Age

Workplace discrimination shows up in many forms and can start as early as the application process. Discrimination can extend to wage and promotion decisions, layoffs, disciplinary processes, and more.

• There were more than 80,000 charges brought by the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against employers during the latest reporting year.

Sexual harassment is hostile

Any kind of sexual harassment or abuse in the workplace is hostile, and it happens in all industries at every income level. Even though the “Me Too” movement has brought many of these issues to our attention, there is still work to be done.

• According to NPR, 38% of women in the workplace have reported being sexually harassed.

We know this problem is more widespread than the official reports. Many women and men choose not to report instances of workplace sexual abuse or harassment because they fear retaliation from their coworkers or employers.

LGBTQ issues in the workplace

While federal law does not afford strong protections for LGBTQ community members when it comes to hiring and employment, California law does. Nobody should face a hostile work environment because of their sexuality or gender identity.

LOS ANGELES HOSTILE WORK ENVIRONMENTS: WHAT TO DO IN A HOSTILE WORKPLACE

The specific manner in which you should respond if you believe you’re the victim of a hostile work environment can vary depending on the nature of the mistreatment you’re facing, your role at the company, the type of organization for which you work, and more. However, the following are general steps anyone should take in these circumstances:

• Report the issue: Consult your employee handbook or another such resource to learn what the official company procedure is for reporting complaints of a hostile work environment to HR. Understandably, you may be reluctant to take this step for fear that HR will protect the company instead of protecting you. At the very least, you may assume HR won’t remedy the situation. These may be reasonable concerns. However, when you later pursue justice with the assistance of a Los Angeles hostile work environment attorney, you’ll strengthen your case if you can show that your feelings about hostility in the workplace were significant enough that you felt it necessary to file an official complaint.
• Document the hostility: Being as specific as possible when describing how you were a victim of a hostile work environment will play a major role in your Los Angeles hostel work environment case’s outcome. Your odds of success will greatly improve if you can reference numerous specific instances of hostility. Thus, to the best of your ability, you should document any instances of hostile treatment you’re subject to. This might involve saving emails, saving chat conversations, and keeping a written log in which you describe face-to-face interactions characteristic of a hostile workplace.
• Identify witnesses: You may rely on witnesses to corroborate your story when taking legal action to address a hostile work environment. When keeping a log of instances in which you were treated with hostility, also consider identifying witnesses who could back up your story. You might not want to immediately approach them about the possibility of “backing you up” when you file your initial complaint with HR if you’re not sure you can trust them. That said, your attorney may wish to interview them after you file a claim or lawsuit.
• Identify the negative impact of a hostile workplace: Just as you should be specific when describing how yours was a hostile work environment, you should also aim for specificity when describing the negative impacts working in such an environment had on you. For example, you may have noticed that working in this type of environment has had a measurable effect on the quality of your performance. Perhaps it’s even caused you to experience profound stress that you’ve needed to seek therapy.

Taking all these steps can also help you prepare for your initial consultation with an expert at our Los Angeles hostile work environment firm. During this initial meeting, which is free and confidential, we’ll evaluate your case to determine if you have grounds to proceed with a claim or lawsuit. We’ll be able to provide you with a more thorough assessment of your options if you provide us with as much detail as possible.

What we will do now to help

It does not matter who you are, what you look like, or who you love – you should never be subject to a hostile work environment. If you or a loved one need help, the Azadian Law Group, PC is ready to step in on your behalf. Our dedicated and skilled team will investigate all aspects of your case. Our goal is to ensure you get the compensation you deserve for the wrongs you have encountered. This can include:

• Pain and suffering damages
• Recovery of lost wages and benefits
• Reinstatement or promotion, if necessary
• Compensation for any needed counseling
• Possible punitive damages against those responsible

When you need a Los Angeles hostile work environment attorney, you can contact us for a free consultation by clicking here or calling us at 213-229-9031.

Nobody should have to worry about experiencing discrimination in a hostile work environment when they go to work each day. However, we know that workers in every industry can face difficulties. Often, what a worker experiences in these cases is illegal. At the Azadian Law Group, PC, we are here to help workers. Today, we want to answer questions about what constitutes a hostile work environment and what you can do about it. When you need a Los Angeles hostile work environment attorney, call us today.