Discrimination and Civil Rights

Age (40+) Discrimination

Age (40+) discrimination occurs when your employer treats you unfairly because you are 40 years old or older. This can include being fired, laid off, denied promotions, pushed out, or passed over in favor of younger workers despite your experience or performance. Forced retirement, undue pressure to retire early, or a “layoff” can be signs of age discrimination. Employers often try to justify this conduct by using coded language like “not a good fit,” “overqualified,” or “lacking energy.” The law protects you from decisions based on age-related stereotypes rather than your actual ability to do the job. Retaliation for complaining about age discrimination is also unlawful. Centurion Trial Attorneys protects experienced workers who are targeted because of their age and helps them enforce their rights at work.

Disability Discrimination

Disability discrimination occurs when your employer treats you unfairly because of a physical or mental disability, a medical condition, or a history of impairment. This can include being denied a job or promotion, having your hours reduced, being fired, or being refused reasonable accommodations that would allow you to do your job. The law requires your employer to engage in a good-faith process and provide reasonable accommodations, such as modified duties, adjusted schedules, or assistive tools, unless doing so would be truly unreasonable. Your employer may not ignore your request for accommodations or punish you for asking. A workers’ rights lawyer can help you determine whether your employer violated the law and what steps you can take to protect yourself. Our firm is led by Attorney Ryan, a well-known advocate for workers’ rights, who represents employees facing disability discrimination and helps them enforce their legal protections.

English-Only Policies

English-only policies restrict when and how employees may speak languages other than English at work. Under California law, these policies are unlawful unless the employer can show a clear business necessity and narrowly limit the rule to specific times or situations. Employers cannot impose blanket English-only rules or use them to target workers based on national origin, accent, or cultural background. Policies that prohibit speaking another language during breaks, casual conversations, or non-work-related moments are especially problematic. English-only rules are often used to mask discrimination or create a hostile work environment. When improperly enforced, these policies can violate multiple worker protections at once. Attorney Ryan’s team protects workers harmed by unlawful English-only workplace rules.

Equal Pay Act Violations

California’s Equal Pay Act requires employers to pay employees equally for substantially similar work, regardless of sex, gender, race, or ethnicity. Equal Pay Act violations occur when workers performing similar jobs—requiring similar skill, effort, and responsibility—are paid differently without a lawful reason. Employers often try to justify pay gaps by pointing to job titles, negotiation history, or vague claims about performance, but those excuses are not enough under the law. Pay differences must be based on legitimate factors like seniority, merit, or measurable productivity. When employers cannot prove a lawful reason, unequal pay is illegal. Attorney Ryan’s team protects workers who are paid less for doing substantially similar work.

Failure to Accommodate Religious Practices

Federal and California laws require employers to reasonably accommodate sincerely held religious beliefs, practices, and observances. The law protects your beliefs as long as they are sincerely held, even if your employer views them as unusual, unpopular, or unfamiliar. Failure to accommodate religious practices occurs when your employer refuses to adjust workplace rules or schedules to allow you to practice your faith. Accommodations can include schedule changes, dress or grooming exceptions, time off for religious observances, or modifications to workplace policies. An employer may deny a request only if it would cause an undue hardship under the law. Centurion Trial Attorneys protects employees whose employers wrongfully deny religious accommodations.

LGBTQ+ Discrimination

LGBTQ+ discrimination occurs when your employer treats you unfairly because of your sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. This can include being fired, denied promotions, harassed, misgendered, or treated differently at work. Other abusive practices, such as “deadnaming” or disregarding preferred pronouns are also unlawful. The law protects you whether you are openly LGBTQ+ or perceived to be LGBTQ+. Employers also cannot enforce dress codes, bathroom policies, or workplace rules in a way that targets or disadvantages LGBTQ+ employees. Harassment and retaliation for speaking up are also unlawful. Centurion Trial Attorneys protects employees whose employers discriminate against them because of who they are.

National Origin Discrimination

National origin discrimination occurs when your employer treats you unfairly because of where you are from, where your family is from, your ethnicity, cultural practices, appearance, or your accent. This can include being fired, denied promotions, harassed, or subjected to different rules because of your background. The law also protects you from discrimination based on perceived national origin, even if your employer is wrong. Harassment based on national origin, language, or cultural stereotypes is also prohibited. Centurion Trial Attorneys protects employees who are targeted because of their national origin and works to enforce their rights at work.

Pay Discrimination

Pay discrimination occurs when your employer pays you less because of a protected characteristic, such as your sex, gender, race, age, disability, or other protected status. Unlike Equal Pay Act claims, pay discrimination does not require a direct comparison to someone doing substantially similar work. It can include discriminatory starting pay, smaller raises, denied bonuses, or being placed on a lower pay scale for unlawful reasons. Pay discrimination often shows up gradually and compounds over time, costing workers tens of thousands of dollars. Employers cannot justify unequal pay decisions based on bias, stereotypes, or retaliation. Attorney Ryan’s team protects workers whose compensation was affected by unlawful discrimination.

Race Discrimination

Federal and California laws prohibit employers from discriminating against employees based on race. Race discrimination occurs when your employer treats you unfairly because of your race, skin color, or racial characteristics. This can include being fired, denied promotions, paid less, harassed, or held to different standards at work. Discrimination can also be based on perceived race, even if your employer is wrong. Racial harassment, including slurs, stereotypes, or hostile conduct, is also unlawful. Centurion Trial Attorneys protects employees whose employers violate race discrimination laws and deny them equal treatment at work.

Religious Discrimination

Most employers are prohibited from discriminating against you for your religious practices. Religious discrimination occurs when your employer treats you unfairly because of your religion, religious beliefs, or religious practices. This can include being fired, disciplined, denied promotions, or treated differently because of your faith. It also includes harassment or hostility based on religion. The law protects you from discrimination regardless of whether your beliefs are popular, traditional, or well understood by your employer. You do not need to belong to a mainstream religion to be protected. Centurion Trial Attorneys protects employees whose employers discriminate against them because of religion and holds them accountable for unlawful conduct.

Sex and Gender Identity Discrimination

Federal and California law prohibit employers from discriminating against employees based on sex, gender, gender identity, or gender expression. Sex and gender identity discrimination occurs when your employer treats you unfairly because of who you are or how you express your gender. This can include being fired, denied promotions, paid less, harassed, or held to different standards at work. The law also protects you from discrimination based on sex stereotypes, pregnancy, sexual orientation, and transgender status. Employers cannot enforce dress codes, appearance standards, or workplace policies in a way that targets one gender or gender identity. Centurion Trial Attorneys protects employees whose employers violate these protections.

Trans Employee Rights

Trans employee rights protect you from discrimination, harassment, and retaliation at work because of your gender identity or gender expression. Your employer cannot fire you, discipline you, or treat you differently for being transgender or for transitioning. The law protects your right to use your name and pronouns, access restrooms and facilities consistent with your gender identity, and comply with dress codes applied equally to all employees. Practices such as deadnaming, intentional misgendering, or targeting you with unequal rules can be unlawful. You are also protected if you speak up or request workplace changes related to your transition. Centurion Trial Attorneys protects transgender employees whose employers violate these rights and deny them equal treatment at work.