Employers cannot treat applicants or employees unfavorably because they are of a certain race or due to certain personal characteristics associated with race.

Federal, state, and several municipal laws protects lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer applicants and employees from discriminatory treatment.

Employees covered under disability laws are entitled to reasonable workplace accommodations. Employers cannot discharge for disability disclosure or accommodation requests, or refuse to grant disability-related time off requests.

Certain employment contracts contain provisions relating to disciplinary and dismissal procedures. Employers who flout these provisions are liable for wrongful termination claims based on the breach.

Employees terminated because of their gender have suffered unlawful gender discrimination. Sexual harassment is a form of gender discrimination.

An employer may not fire employees for exercising rights, such as participating in a government investigation against the employer or filing a complaint with HR. This conduct constitutes a retaliatory wrongful termination.

Employees fired due to pregnancy or pre-pregnancy plans may have been wrongfully terminated. Employers cannot discriminate against employees for being pregnant.

Wrongful terminations based on religious discrimination involve discharging employees because of their religious beliefs. Employees married to or associated with an individual of a particular religion are also protected.

A whistleblower is an employee who reports illegal conduct. Whistleblowers are entitled to specialized protections from discharge.

Employers cannot discriminate due to an employee’s marital status. Firing an employee on account of their marital status constitutes a wrongful termination.

USERRA and California law protect an employee’s right to take leave for military service. All employers must honor the leave. An employer who discharges an employee for military leave is liable for damages and attorney fees.

Federal and state law prohibit age discrimination in any aspect of employment. Employers cannot treat employees less favorably because of their age.

Constructive terminations occur when an employee is forced to quit because the employer has made work conditions unbearable via discrimination, harassment, mistreatment, baseless demotions or pay decreases, or due to a hostile work environment.

Ethnicity refers to ethnic traits, backgrounds, allegiances or associations of a particular group of people that share such characteristics in common. Employees dismissed due to ethnicity have a claim for wrongful termination.

Under GINA, employers cannot acquire genetic information. An employer who unlawfully obtains and discharges an employee on the basis of genetic information has committed a wrongful termination.

Employers cannot discriminate due to national origin, which includes nationality, ancestry, culture, and ethnic-specific linguistic characteristics.

An employer is liable for a termination that violates public policy. Public policy consists of actions that are against the public’s interest, such as requiring an employee to commit an illegal act.

Employees have the right to attend to family responsibilities which involve caring for family members. Employers may not terminate an employee for their family responsibilities.