Labor/Employment Civil Rights
This is a broad area of law which includes protection of your right to be free from discrimination in the workplace, unlawful termination, breach of the duty of fair representation, breach of employment contract and other illegal conduct by employers.
Civil Rights claims involve claims of discrimination or harassment because of protected class such as gender, age, disability, race or religion. They also involve claims for discrimination based on protected activity such as whistle blowing, union organizing, testifying in support of a fellow worker or reporting safety violations. Typically, these types of claims involve violations of both state and federal law.
Civil Rights laws also prohibit retaliation for filing a workers' compensation claim and the right of injured workers to be returned to their jobs when released by their doctor to do so. These claims may also involve disability discrimination
Duty of fair representation claims are unique to employees who are members of unions and believe that their union has not fairly represented them in a dispute with their employer. If you are a member of a union, there is a whole set of laws and a labor contract that governs the three-way relationship between you, the employer and the union.
Finally, there are laws to protect a worker's right to be paid. Sometimes the law imposes large penalties against an employer for not paying wages on time.
Almost all of these laws require that the employer or defendant pay your legal fees if you win.
At times, an employer's conduct can violate one or more of the laws protecting workers in the workplace. We can discuss with you the different laws that may apply to your case and the notice requirements for each claim. For example, the rules are different if your claim is against a private employer or the government or the union if you are a member. We have represented workers in virtually every type of employment dispute and are ready to help you.
