Race Discrimination

Race discrimination at work is illegal, but it is rarely announced. It shows up in who gets hired, promoted, disciplined, paid more, or let go. A race discrimination lawyer can help you see the pattern and prove it.

Smith Trial Group represents employees throughout Southern California in race, color, national origin, and ancestry discrimination cases. Our results include a $125,000 settlement in a race discrimination and wrongful termination case. We work on contingency.

On this page: The law · How it shows up · Hair and grooming · Proving it · Remedies · FAQ

Race Discrimination Laws That Protect You

• California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA): prohibits discrimination based on race, color, national origin, and ancestry by employers with five or more employees, and prohibits harassment by employers of any size.
• Title VII of the Civil Rights Act: the federal counterpart, covering employers with 15 or more employees.
• 42 U.S.C. § 1981: a federal civil rights law that protects the right to make and enforce contracts, including employment, without regard to race. It applies regardless of employer size and has a longer filing deadline for many claims.

How Race Discrimination Shows Up

• Termination, demotion, or harsher discipline than coworkers of a different race
• Being passed over for promotions, training, or desirable assignments
• Unequal pay for substantially similar work
• Slurs, “jokes,” stereotypes, or comments about accents or names
• Being steered into particular roles, shifts, or locations
• Retaliation after complaining about discrimination

Hair Texture and Protective Hairstyles

California was the first state to adopt the CROWN Act, which makes clear that race discrimination includes discrimination based on traits historically associated with race, such as hair texture and protective hairstyles like braids, locks, and twists. Grooming policies that target those styles can violate FEHA.

How Race Discrimination Is Proven

Direct evidence such as a slur from a decision-maker is powerful but uncommon. Most cases are built on circumstantial evidence: how similarly situated coworkers were treated, the timing of decisions, shifting or inconsistent explanations, statistics, and the employer’s own policies and records. Our attorneys spent years defending large employers, so we know where that evidence usually lives.

Remedies

Remedies can include lost wages and benefits, emotional distress damages, punitive damages in appropriate cases, reinstatement, and attorney’s fees. See also workplace discrimination and hostile work environment.

Most FEHA claims must first be filed with the California Civil Rights Department (CRD), generally within three years, before a lawsuit can be filed. Federal claims have much shorter deadlines. Talk to a lawyer promptly.

Helpful resources: California Civil Rights Department · EEOC: Race and Color Discrimination

Frequently Asked Questions

My employer gave a reason for firing me. Can I still have a race discrimination case?

Yes. Employers almost always give a reason. The question is whether that reason is the real one, or a pretext for discrimination.

Is national origin discrimination the same as race discrimination?

They are separate protected categories under California law, but they often overlap, and claims frequently include both.